Meghan Markle's father might not attend the royal wedding

Meghan Markle’s father may not attend the royal Wedding, it has emerged, just five days before he was due to talk her down the aisle.

Doubts that Thomas Markle Sr, 73, would give his daughter away on Saturday followed claims by US celebrity website, TMZ, that he was pulling out amid allegations he cooperated with a Los Angeles based photo agency to stage pictures of himself preparing for the wedding day. Markle Sr had suffered a heart attack six days ago, TMZ claimed.

Responding to the report, Kensington Palace said: “This is a deeply personal moment for Ms Markle in the days before her wedding. She and Prince Harry ask again for understanding and respect to be extended to Mr Markle in this difficult situation.”

Kensington Palace had announced earlier this month that Markle Sr, a retired television lighting engineer who lives in Mexico, would walk his daughter to the altar at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, where she will marry Prince Harry on Saturday in front of 600 guests and an international television audience of millions.

Her mother, Doria Ragland, 61, a social worker and yoga teacher who lives in Los Angeles, is expected to accompany her daughter in the bridal car. Markle was then planning to take her father’s arm on the steps of the chapel.

The development followed a report in the Mail which alleged that Markle Sr had helped stage pictures showing him being measured for his wedding suit and looking up reports in an internet cafe about the forthcoming wedding. The newspaper printed photographs which it claimed showed Markle and the photographer entering the cafe together.

Samantha Markle, Ms Markle's half-sister from her father's first marriage, has claimed she is to blame for the photographs.

She tweeted: "The media was unfairly making him look bad so I suggested he do positive photos for his benefit and the benefit of the royal family.

"We had no idea he would be taken advantage of. It was not for money."

Prince Harry has yet to meet his future father-in-law. Kensington Palace has previously said Markle’s parents would meet senior members of the royal family, including the Queen, in private this week. But it remained unclear on Monday night whether Markle Sr would be flying to London as planned.

On Sunday, Buckingham Palace released a photo of the Queen's written consent which allows the couple to marry.