Meghan Markle Gives Jam to Friend From Time of Crisis

Meghan Markle has given a jar of her exclusive American Riviera Orchard strawberry jam to one of her Suits co-stars and closest friends who, it was revealed in the royal’s 2022 Netflix docuseries, had been by the duchess’ side during a time of personal crisis.

On April 21, actress Abigail Spencer, who played the character of Dana Scott in Suits, posted a series of images to Instagram, showcasing Meghan’s famous breakfast preserve. The jam is the first product to bare the “American Riviera Orchard” name, which Meghan soft launched last month with a slick new website, social media page and trademark applications.

The jam jars are numbered in a limited run of 50, Spencer’s jar being number 6.

A small number of Meghan’s close friends have also posted images of their jars to social media, revealing who is among her close circle. These include Delfina Blaquier, the wife of Prince Harry’s polo pal, Nacho Figueras, and the actress and writer Mindy Kaling.

Spencer captioned her post: “This jam is my jam. A delicious taste of what’s to come indeed… love you so M.”

The pair’s bond has long been one which has played out in the public eye, having first met in 2007 when both auditioned for a Hollywood project together. “I walk in I see this beautiful gorgeous creature at the end of the table and I’m like who is that?” Spencer said in 2024. “We had an immediate something, you know?”

The depth of their relationship was revealed in 2022, when Spencer was interviewed as part of the Harry & Meghan Netflix docuseries which was produced by the duke and duchess after their split from the monarchy.

Spencer, who had been a guest at their royal wedding, spoke on camera about the scrutiny that Harry and Meghan had faced and how she had witnessed one of Meghan’s darkest days.

In 2020, at the time Meghan was fighting a legal battle with a British tabloid publisher over the publication of a private letter written to her father, Spencer said she traveled to the royal’s new home in Montecito, California, to help her friend, who was pregnant with her second child at the time, unpack and settle in.

“I’m driving up just like, ‘We’re gonna unpack. We’re gonna get settled.’ And Meg is standing outside, waiting for me, and I can tell something’s off,” the star told Netflix viewers.

“She’s showing me the new home. It’s very mixed emotions, ‘Here’s our new home,’ but she’s like, ‘I’m having a lot of pain.'”

Spencer went on to say that as Meghan was holding Prince Archie, she “just fell to the ground.” In the docuseries, Meghan then said that she had experienced a miscarriage.

Recalling the event, Spencer became visibly emotional.

In the years since Meghan first became connected with Prince Harry, then going on to join the royal family with the increased global media pressure that came along with it, Spencer has spoken rarely about the duchess in interviews.

In addition to personal interests, Meghan and Spencer share the same birthday, August 4, and were both born in the same year, 1981.

Four months after the loss of her child in 2020, Meghan would go on to publish an account of her experience in The New York Times titled “The Losses We Share.” In it, the duchess highlighted the importance of asking people if they are “ok” as well as reflecting on how she and Prince Harry supported each other through their grief.

Newsweek approached representatives of Spencer and Markle via email for comment.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek‘s royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek‘s The Royals Facebook page.

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