Lizzie Cundy narrowly avoided an awkward reunion with her former friend Meghan Markle at a recent charity event in the US.

The 56-year-old socialite struck up a friendship with the Duchess of Sussex back in 2013, when they began chatting at a charity event in London. Lizzie claimed Meghan had asked her for details of “famous men” she could set her up with, but the WAG admitted she was “ghosted” by Meghan when she met Prince Harry.

The women escaped a frosty reunion at the 2024 Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) Gala on Saturday, and Lizzie – who is in Los Angeles working on several projects – was almost left red-faced as she was also wearing a similar red dress to Meghan. However, the mother-of-two left the event after the red carpet photocall, leaving Lizzie to rub shoulders with A-list celebs such as Jamie Lee Curtis and Demi Lovato.

A source told The Sun that Lizzie was “relieved” Meghan left the event early, as she was still “hurt” after being brutally dropped by the royal when she met Harry. “It would have been incredibly awkward, given Lizzie didn’t even get an invite to the wedding,” the insider explained.

Lizzie has openly spoken about her friendship with Meghan, and recalled hitting it off with the former Suits star at a charity dinner in 2013. “We were having a girly chat and then she said, ‘Do you know any famous guys? I’m single and I really love English men.’ So I said, ‘We’ll go out and find you someone,’” she shared, adding that just three months before meeting Lizzie, Meghan had divorced her first husband Trevor Engelson.

In her autobiography, Tales From The Red Carpet, Lizzie revealed who she was planning on setting Meghan up with on a date. “I was thinking about some of the Chelsea lot and I thought of Ashley Cole as he’d split from Cheryl. I showed her a photo of Ashley and she was like, ‘Oh yeah, he’s cute. Does he have a reputation?’ I was like, ‘Well, yeah, but you’re only here to have a bit of fun,’” Lizzie wrote.

The women met up the following day at another gala in London, and she said Meghan “liked a drink” and was great fun. “I remember her asking about my boys. She was very interested and asking lots of questions. Usually you find actresses just talk about themselves. She was really fun, really sweet. I liked her,” she confessed.

However, Lizzie was cruelly dumped by Meghan when she started dating Harry, and she found out about their relationship online. “I texted saying, ‘Oh my god, I heard about Harry.’ And she was like, ‘Yeah I know. We’ll try and hook up,’” Lizzie recalled, as she sadly added that Meghan then cut all ties with her. “She was probably told by the Palace to end contact with people she befriended in the media. I was literally ghosted by her,” she shared.