Has a gift from Meghan to Eugenie ended up on eBay? Mystery as ‘deeply personal’ copy of duchess’s book The Bench with heartfelt handwritten note to ‘Eug and Jack’ emerges for sale for £20K

A copy of Meghan Markle’s children’s book featuring what appears to be a handwritten and loving inscription from the Duchess to Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank has been listed on eBay for £20,000.

The seller claims the first edition was given as a personal gift to Prince Harry’s cousin and her husband following the birth of their first child.

The inscription, which has not been independently verified, appears to be signed in Meghan’s distinctive black calligraphic handwriting and refers to Eugenie as ‘Eug’ – a nickname used by close family members, including her sister Princess Beatrice.

Dated 2021, the message was allegedly written during the year Eugenie and Jack welcomed their son, August.

It also suggests the book was written while Harry and Meghan were living at Frogmore Cottage in the grounds of Windsor Castle.

The inscription reads: ‘Dear Eug & Jack, Celebrating the special bond between father and son. I wrote this poem at Frogmore – I hope that Eug, you witness the same love there with your guys. All love, Meghan.’

The rare copy of The Bench is being sold by a London-based dealer specialising in signed books, which describes it as an ‘absolute masterpiece of modern royal history’ likely to appeal to collectors and museums alike.

Its appearance on the online marketplace has prompted speculation over how the book left royal hands and ended up with an eBay seller.

While new copies can still be bought online for around £2, this signed edition purportedly gifted to Eugenie and Jack is being offered for £20,000. Buyers unwilling to pay the full amount upfront are invited to spread the cost through monthly payments of £943.29 over 24 months via PayPal.

Ten per cent of the sale will be donated to a charity that supports disadvantaged children in education in Thailand.

However, the owner of Drive Easy’s Signed Books, which has sold more than 2,300 items and boasts a 100 per cent customer satisfaction rating over the past decade, has not disclosed how such a rare and personal piece of royal memorabilia came into his possession.

Given how close Meghan and Harry have been to Eugenie and Jack, its sale has sparked intrigue online.

There is not a certificate of authenticity but the seller claims the message is ‘undeniably’ by Meghan’s hand. The signature also appears to match Meghan’s.

One social media user who spotted the listing wrote: ‘So, remember Meghan’s book? Of course she gave Eugenie a signed copy too, with a lovely personal message in that perfect calligraphy. Shame she either binned it or flogged it on eBay.

‘Some treasures clearly aren’t appreciated by everyone.’

A spokesman for Princess Eugenie and a spokesman for the Duchess of Sussex have been asked for comment.

Mr Greenwood declined to comment when approached about the listing on eBay.

Meghan released The Bench through Random House Children’s Books in June 2021, having reportedly secured a £500,000 advance two years earlier.

Unlike Harry’s memoir Spare, The Bench – which explores the ‘special bond between father and son’ as seen through a mother’s eyes – was not a commercial success.

The £12.99 book was published on June 8, 2021, but failed to make the UK Official Top 50 chart after selling just 3,212 copies in its first week.

Meghan has not published another children’s book since, and some estimates suggest The Bench sold fewer than 10,000 copies in total.

Described as a ‘presentation copy’, the listing states that it is ‘inscribed, dated and signed by Meghan’.

According to the seller, the book has been read but not heavily, with only ‘very slight’ scratches and creases to the cover and pages.

The description continues: ‘This is a completely unique, historically significant presentation copy of The Bench, featuring a spectacular handwritten inscription by the author, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.

‘Written in the Duchess’s highly celebrated, fluid signature calligraphy style, the personal message links the Sussexes directly to the heart of the British Royal Family.

‘This text offers an extraordinary, undeniable record of modern royal history, explicitly tying the book to the exact timeline and geography of the family.’

The seller, Nicholas Greenwood, suggests the book was sent to Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank after they moved into Frogmore Cottage, the Sussexes’ former home before Megxit.

The listing states: ‘Following Prince Harry and Meghan’s move abroad, Princess Eugenie (“Eug”) and Jack Brooksbank moved into Frogmore Cottage in late 2020.

‘Meghan’s beautifully personal wish that Eugenie would “witness the same love there with your guys” is a direct, intimate blessing for their new life inside the Windsor home.’

Highlighting the significance of the gift, given shortly after the Brooksbanks became parents, the description adds: ‘The inscription celebrates “the special bond between father and son”. This perfectly captures the moment the book was published in June 2021, just months after Princess Eugenie and Jack welcomed their first-born child, a son named August, in February 2021.

‘Authentic, intimate gifts sent from one member of the Royal Family directly to another are exceptionally rare to find on the open market. This book is therefore a pinnacle piece for any serious royal memorabilia collector, autograph hunter or contemporary archivist.’

Nicholas Greenwood, who lives in London, has run his signed books business on eBay for ten years, selling thousands of signed copies.

All his sales benefit a charity supporting education in Thailand and his eBay store has flawless reviews.

Meghan Markle’s friendship with Princess Eugenie goes back to the very start of her relationship with Harry – and they remained close even after Megxit.

In the early days of Meghan and Harry’s relationship, Eugenie and her now-husband Jack went on double dates with the couple.

They also visited Toronto, Canada, to see the pair after the Prince had travelled to be with Meghan during her time filming legal drama Suits.

Speaking to her friend Ellen DeGeneres in a surprise talk show interview in November 2021, Meghan said she and Harry wanted to have ‘one fun night on the town before it was out in the world that we were a couple’.

She explained how she and the Prince enjoyed a party with Eugenie and Jack days before the news of their relationship broke.

Speaking about the event in 2016, she told Ellen: ‘He came to see me in Toronto and our friends and his cousin Eugenie and now her husband Jack, they came as well, and the four of us snuck out in Halloween costumes to just have one fun night on the town before it was out in the world that we were a couple. 

‘It was a post-apocalypse theme, so we had all this very bizarre costuming on, and we were able to just have one fun final night out.’

The couple also recalled the night out in the first episode of their explosive Netflix docuseries Harry and Meghan.

They recalled how they went incognito with ‘borrowed’ costumes with Eugenie, Jack, and Meghan’s close friend Markus Anderson.

Jack and Eugenie split their time between Kensington Palace and their villa in Portugal.

Meghan and Harry are believed to have ended up buying a property in the same resort. 

Their two families are believed to have spent time together there over the summer, before the Sussexes announced they would be returning to the UK.

Prince Harry made a surprise appearance at a black-tie gala for Ukraine in London on Thursday night as his estranged brother Prince William appeared virtually at another charity ball just a few miles away.

The Duke of Sussex smiled and waved in a tuxedo, followed by his bodyguard, as he arrived at the United for Freedom gala at the Imperial War Museum in central London.

Meanwhile, in west London, the Prince of Wales was supporting the inaugural Bowelbabe Fund Rebel Ball, held on what would have been Dame Deborah James’s 45th birthday.

William had spent the day in Wales but sent a video message to be played at the event, praising Dame Deborah’s ‘rebellious hope’ and the extraordinary fundraising legacy that continues after her death from bowel cancer in 2022.

The diary clash came as Harry carried out yet another public engagement in Britain following his family’s return to the UK in late August.

Earlier on Thursday, Meghan launched a £112 ($148) advent calendar in her first commercial venture since relocating. The calendar, featuring 24 gourmet chocolates said to be inspired by her Montecito home and garden, also includes a festive illustration of the £11million mansion she and Harry called home for six years.

Harry, meanwhile, continues to focus on his charitable causes. The United for Freedom gala was held to raise money for organisations supporting Ukraine as the war entered its fifth year earlier this year.

He spoke at the event about the historical ties between Britain and Ukraine before sharing his own experience during recent trips to the war-torn nation.

‘I have seen something in Ukraine that makes it impossible for me to look away. I have met people who have lost limbs, lost homes and lost loved ones –  and yet somehow find the strength to rebuild,’ said the Prince. 

Harry also praised the resilience of the Ukrainian people who defend the frontline while also keeping businesses and schools going all while ‘developing technology that is changing the nature of modern warfare’.

He continued:  ‘But their resilience should never become an excuse for the rest of us to tolerate their suffering. Ukrainians should not have to prove, year after year, just how much they can endure. 

‘Their courage deserves more than our admiration. It deserves our resolve.’

Meanwhile, his brother the Prince of Wales was involved in an event just six miles away at Fulham’s Hurlingham Club via a pre-recorded video message at the inaugural Bowelbabe Fund Rebel Ball.

The gala took place to raise money for the late journalist’s charity and Cancer Research UK.   

Paying tribute to Dame Deborah, William said: ‘What struck me was Deborah’s positivity and humour in the face of adversity – what she liked to call “rebellious hope”.’