The Duchess of Sussex celebrated her 45th birthday on Tuesday, August 4th. She posted some adorable pics on her Instagram, writing: “Thank you for the birthday love!” The pics are of Meghan holding about a dozen balloons as she jumps into a pool. This pool looks like the same one from The Instagram Carousel That Brought Down A Monarchy – the infamous pic of Prince Harry “flipping” Lili in the air. Same pool, right? Is…is this pool in Montecito? Or did Meghan take these balloon photos during their summer-vacation travels?
Hours after she posted her birthday thanks, she added a cute video onto her Instagram Stories. She dancing around her Montecito kitchen, wearing an “It’s Giving Mrs.” t-shirt and a paper birthday tiara. Harry is so clearly behind the camera, filming his wife. Half of the photos and videos she posts were taken by Harry, and yet those fussy old biddies still cry about how Harry shouldn’t allow Meghan to post anything on Instagram!
Speaking about fussy old biddies, Page Six had a big story about why the left-behinds “snubbed” Meghan’s birthday. Let me take a wild guess: because those heaux are not her family or her friends? P6 got Tom Sykes to say that it’s all because Meghan isn’t a working royal! What makes it even funnier is that basically every media outlet (including Fox News) posted really lovely birthday wishes and nice photos of Meghan.
"It's Giving Mrs." lmao pic.twitter.com/9Nq1Bs2boC
— Kaiser@Celebitchy (@KaiseratCB) August 4, 2026
Happy 45th birthday, Meghan Markle! From “Suits” star to the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan has built a remarkable journey that's taken her from Hollywood to the world stage. Today, she's celebrating another year filled with new business ventures, creative projects and family life… pic.twitter.com/MpJficJjjx
— Fox News Entertainment (@FoxNewsEnt) August 4, 2026
Happy birthday to Meghan, Duchess of Sussex! The lifestyle entrepreneur, wife of Prince Harry and mom to Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet turns 45 today 🎉 🎂 🥂
📸: Meghan / Getty#meghanmarkle pic.twitter.com/HsOK1wjkOM
— HELLO! Canada (@HelloCanada) August 4, 2026
Photos courtesy of Meghan’s Instagram, Avalon Red.
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- Third Annual World Mental Health Day Gala hosted by Project Healthy Minds held at Spring Studios,Image: 1044459731, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Meghan,the Duchess of Sussex, Credit line: Udo Salters/Wenn/Avalon
Happy birthday
when Fox news is wishing you happy birthday but your ILs aren’t…..
in all honesty thought I dont want the royal accounts mentioning her name since they won’t take steps to protect her in the comments – even though they will take action for other royals.
I think they are different pools. the deck/edges of the pools look completely different. I dont think the picture with Lili is Montecito because that pool seems more exposed, without landscaping close up to it like in the picture, but this pool looks round or oval and also not like Montecito which is a rectangle I think? But based on the video they’re in Montecito. I guess its possible one of the pictures wasn’t from yesterday – maybe she celebrated her bday early elsewhere with friends and that’s the pool pic?
But we do have confirmation that her kitchen has not been redone into a cold modern marble monstrosity, lol.
I used to hate when the Royal Family used to post birthday greetings to Meghan because I knew they were never genuine and I glad that they’ve stopped and didn’t do it this year. They don’t consider her family so why pretend that she is. I’m sure she was polite when she met Charles and Camilla a few weeks ago but she’s moved on and stopped trying to be accepted by them.
This is a different pool. The one in Montecito is rectangular without trees around it. It seems she celebrated with friends, maybe their pool? Abigail Spencer is Meghan’s birthday twin, might be her house?
However, they had fun. And have the British tabloids in a frenzy again. For days to come. From trying to overshadow Eugenie’s baby news to stealing Queen Mum’s birthday, and William’s christening date (where he stole Queen Mum’s spotlight!), and of course how dare she wear a bathing suit just like Diana and jump into water just like Diana!
I loved the photos and the cute video with the dogs. Had to google “It gives Mrs”, is that a new expression? Never saw it before.
Happy birthday again to the Duchess. Looks like she enjoyed it. 🎂
The pool is at their home in Montecito. I loved those photos and I hope Meghan had a wonderful birthday. Every time I see pictures and videos like this it makes the theory that Harry and Meghan want to return to royal life deluded and ridiculous. There’s no way that they would be able to post photos and videos like that as working royals. I’m just thinking of how restricted Meghan’s life was as a working royal and I feel happy that she was able to leave.
And as others have said, these photos and videos counteract the nasty tabloid storylines about the state of their marriage.
No, I dont think its the pool in Montecito. The pool in Montecito is a rectangular ground level pool, this looks round and not ground level.
https://harpersbazaar.com.au/meghan-markle-prince-harry-mansion/
but looking at these pics I take back my above statement bc I do think the Harry and Lili picture could have been in Montecito.
Maybe Meghan’s pool pic is @ friends Tracy Robbins? Go to her instagram. She has a small pic of Meghan’s b-day cake, a mahjong b-day cake.
The rectanglular pool is definitely their home in Montecito, where Harry is flipping Lili and where Meghan is sunbathing with Mia giving her kisses, while Charles Spencer and his new wife are lounging just beyond her.
The balloons are the same as the ones in their kitchen in Harry’s video, so maybe the round/oval pool is at a nearby friend’s house (as @Shelley suggests)?
The pool could look round because of distortion from whatever lens Harry used to take it (probably a phone). Wish I remembered enough about photography to guess which one it could be. Since the balloons do look like the same ones in their kitchen, that this is their own pool would make the most sense. Also, how many people have circular in ground pools? Though come to think of it, if it doesn’t look level with the background, maybe it is a friend/neighbor’s above ground pool!
I agree. I was going to post the same thing then saw that several people had already made the correction.
As Kasztanka and others have said, the Montecito pool is at ground level and is square. The trees are further away from their home pool than the one in this birthday photo. This pool is curved and elevated – you can tell from the trees. It looks like one of those panorama pools. And from the ladder, it appears that you have to climb up to get to it.
It may have been at a friend’s place, but I think this was a pre-birthday celebration before they left Europe.
I am sure she had a smashing time, surrounded by love, and that kitchen video was very cute. Seems Harry interrupted making breakfast to film his wife dancing around the kitchen. From the Netflix series it’s clear that he loves when Meghan sings and dances like that, because he knows that she is feeling happy and contented.
Becks1
Harry and Lili are definitely having a blast in their pool. In one of the photos from your link, you can see a section of the pool’s white rim, whereas in the one I posted (if you zoom in), you can see it running the entire length of the pool—plus that hedge. Your photo also shows a wooden sunbed—exactly the same one Meghan is lying on, with the dog beside her and the Spencers behind her.
I suspect this visit might have been tied to their wedding.
The Windsors are seething :)))
Montecito
https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/48/2024/07/imgu4kPCn-3897fb2.jpg?quality=90&webp=true&fit=1100,779
I’ll add—just in case it still isn’t clear to anyone—that the pool she jumps into is obviously not the Montecito one, which is flush with the ground and has no trees nearby. The “birthday” pool is elevated—as if it were placed on the ground rather than sunk into it—and it has trees right over the water, with a rope attached that Meghan used to “fly” out over the pool :))
Who was expecting them to wish her a happy birthday, when they haven’t wished her one in what— five years? They have to make it seem like someone is being snubbed when the person in question isn’t thinking about them at all. They just want to get in on the attention. I’m not even on social media and I’m positive that posts about Meghan’s birthday went viral yesterday.
ANYWAY. The post with her dancing is super cute, and dare I say ” relatable” because I and many others have spent tons of birthdays dancing along to Stevie’s version of Happy birthday on our day. Looks like she had a fun one, and that’s all that matters.
Pula limbering up to wish M a happy birthday is especially cute.
With the mask in his/her mouth!! what a lab lol.
Harry telling Pula to sit, remembering when Guy was still alive, he said it felt like they’ve 5 children.
Happy Birthday again, Meghan! And the birthday wishes are so interesting, almost gushing. Have FOX and the tabloids published wishes like this before? People had a big article on Meghan’s style through the years.
I think Fox Entertainment has wished her Happy Birthday before. She had a small role on Fox TV show before ‘Suits.’
Those are definitely two different pools. One is a rectangular pool and the other one is rounded with greenery closer to the pool. I am not even sure either of them is her pool in Montecito. I love that age is surrounded by so many rich friends and that her and Harry are so wealthy that these pools could be anywhere, with anyone. Their freedom allows them to live carefree and happy lives outside of the institution and that brings a smile to my face. As did all of yesterday. From Meghan’s fun and happy photos of her jumping into the pool to her dancing with her husband and trying to keep birthday hats on the dogs. I enjoyed seeing the constant birthday wishes she was receiving all day, from all over the world, because it shows that there are more who celebrate her than those who don’t. Her photos and video are just a beautiful thanks and reminder that she’s loved and appreciated and she sees and feels it.
I love that they’re playing the Stevie Wonder version of “Happy Birthday.” For all the people who claim she doesn’t claim her black side. Meghan proves them wrong every time. IYKYK
It was lovely seeing all the birthday love being poured on Meghan by her family and friends. It really highlights that she and Harry are happy and truly free because all of this would have been unimaginable 6 yrs ago.
Cheers to Meghan turning 45 and her cute dog who refused to wear the birthday cone lol.
Imagine hating this woman for living her life and enjoying herself with her friends and family. It makes no sense.
She’s glorious. I love my fellow American. And she has — inadvertently — given me something to hold onto, as I watch my country crash & burn in so many ways, that inspires hope. And she has — inadvertently — given me a serious reality check about so many aspects of my adopted home in the UK that I find confounding.
45?!?!?!? She looks incredible. Probably because she’s such a beautiful person, it shows on the outside. I hope she has an even better 45th year. I turned 38 in April but I’ve heard from everyone that it just gets better in your 40’s. For me, life has just gotten better. My 20s were a mess, my 30s were a lot more stable, and I’m looking forward to leaning into my best life in my 40s like Ms. Meghan!