This man is not Meghan Markle

Karl Jenkins, a 79-year-old composer from Wales, emphasized in a telephone interview on Thursday that he is not Megan Markle.

“No, I’m definitely not,” Mr Jenkins said, adding that he’s “a young 79”.

Why would anyone confuse the composer with the Duchess of Sussex? The allegations began after King Charles III’s coronation at Westminster Abbey on Saturday. Mrs Markle did not gobut Mr. Jenkins, a classical composer who was knighted in 2015, was present because one of his harp compositions was being performed.

Mr Jenkins, who has a head of shaggy white hair and a distinctive bushy moustache, said he wore his usual aviator sunglasses with tinted lenses at the ceremony.

But for some people, its unkempt hair and oversized glasses looked like a disguise. On social mediapranksters claimed Mr Jenkins was Mrs Markle, who Buckingham Palace had said did not travel to London with Prince Harry for the ceremony, but instead stayed in the United States with their children.

On Tuesday, after some tweets speculating Mr Jenkins was an incognito Duchess gained hundreds of thousands of views, he posted a video to TikTok saying he was not Ms Markle in disguise.

“This is exactly what Meghan Markle would say in disguise,” reads the most liked response to his video.

In an interview from London, Mr Jenkins, who said he had met Ms Markle twice, spoke to The New York Times about his unexpected encounter with internet fame.

The following interview has been slightly edited and shortened.

How did you find out that people thought you were Mrs Markle?

My music publisher informed me about this kind of social media frenzy the next day. I couldn’t believe it, really. In my neighborhood, three different groups pointed at me and said, “You were at the abbey!” Drinks are bought for me.

How did you prepare your coronation look?

My hair, glasses and mustache are a permanent fixture. I’ve looked the same since I was 18, so there’s nothing ominous or made up about it. My glasses are not sunglasses, they are prescription glasses, which I have slightly tinted because I had cataract surgery last year.

How do you feel about people being obsessed with your looks?

I don’t know if I should take it as a compliment or not. It’s actually quite ridiculous, because the security required to get into the abbey at the coronation was immense. You had to show a passport, driver’s license and utility bill with an address that matched your name. No one in any form of disguise would have gone through that security.

Which reactions were the funniest to you?

There was something about me that stole the crown jewels. That seemed a bit absurd. There was one who called me the coolest guy in the abbey, which is pretty good for someone my age.