Meghan Markle's best friend Jessica Mulroney celebrated her 40th birthday at the weekend – but her celebrations were muted in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Canadian stylist took to Instagram Stories to reveal to followers how she had spent the landmark occasion, writing: "Quarantine birthday is the new rage and I'm not mad about it." It's not known if Jessica is herself displaying symptoms of the virus, but she is close friends with Sophie Trudeau – wife of Canadian PM Justin Trudeau – who is currently in self-isolation after testing positive.
Video: All about Jessica Mulroney
A statement from the PM's office released last week confirmed that Sophie will "remain in isolation for the time being. She is feeling well, is taking all the recommended precaution and her symptoms remain mild". It noted that her husband is in good health and has no symptoms, according to his office, but will remain in isolation for 14 days.
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Meghan, 38, and Jessica became close while Prince Harry's wife was living in Toronto filming Suits, and are thought to have bonded over their shared love of yoga. They remained close throughout Meghan's courtship with Harry, and Jessica's twin sons were given the honour of holding Meghan's veil as she made her way into St George’s Chapel on 19 May 2018. Jessica's daughter Ivy, meanwhile, served as a flower girl, alongside Princess Charlotte.
Jessica pictured with her husband Ben, and their three children
Jessica holds her friendship with Meghan sacred. In a February 2019 interview with Harper's Bazaar, her first since Harry and Meghan's wedding, she explained why she would never talk about her friendship with the Sussexes. "Listen, every person has to have a bit of privacy in their life," she said. "There are certain things I hold very dear and secret. There are things I'll never talk about for sure. My life is an open book, but there's always a few secret pages in the back that nobody will be able to read."
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