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Today is Meghan Markle’s 40th birthday, but we are not exactly sure how she is celebrating.

The Duchess of Sussex has been keeping a low profile since welcoming her second child, baby Lili, back in June.

She and Harry had made a statement about their extended time away from work for parental leave on their website for their foundation, Archewell.

With COVID-19 restrictions to consider, added alongside Meghan being “fiendishly private”, it makes sense to believe what Harper’s Bazaar reported yesterday about the possible celebrations:

…contrary to previous reports, she isn’t planning a lavish affair to mark the milestone.

A source close to the duchess revealed that she is planning to spend her special day “privately” at home with her husband, Prince Harry, and their two children, Archie and Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, at their home in Montecito, California.

Adding in that “no, she did not hire Oprah Winfrey’s personal party planner”, referring to Colin Cowie, who has organised over-the-top dos for everyone from Jennifer Aniston and Kim Kardashian to Tom Cruise and Jennifer Lopez.

Speaking of Lopez, she wasn’t afraid to go all out with her birthday bash held recently.

But The Telegraph has gone ahead with a completely contrary report today, mentioning how Meghan did hire the celebrity party planner to coordinate her “intimate” birthday bash, before throwing shade on the word “intimate”:

So what exactly does understated look like to a woman who’s hired LA’s splashiest party planner and had a baby shower hosted by Serena Williams and Amal Clooney, which reportedly cost $300k?

It’s said the party will have around 65 guests in attendance, and it seems unlikely that this will be made up of Meghan’s nearest and dearest; when you only have a limited guest list, you call in the big guns.

Oprah will almost certainly be there and it’s likely the couple’s other A-list pals will make the short drive up the Pacific Coast Highway from Los Angeles for the day: The Cordens, The Clooneys and Elton John and David Furnish would all be expected names on the guest list.

Behold, Meghan and her best lady Abigail Spencer at the baby shower mentioned above:

Image: Getty

Apparently, her birthday won’t be a “stuffy” formal seated dinner, but it will include a grazing table full of locally sourced food and wines.

This will include a cake from a local bakery that specialises in chic ‘naked’ cakes topped with fresh flowers, which Harry is in charge of, and could be in the price range of up to $225 (around R3 200).

One real estate agent who regularly sells mega-mansions in the areas also mentions how “Montecito isn’t exactly a low-key place”:

“It might only be about eight square miles in size, but that’s eight square miles of big egos and even bigger budgets. The sky’s the limit when it comes to throwing lavish parties.”

Either way, happy birthday, Meghan:

🎈 Wishing The Duchess of Sussex a very Happy Birthday today! pic.twitter.com/xvrRH4sEwX

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) August 4, 2021

[sources:telegraph&harpersbazaar]