Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, celebrated her 45th birthday on August 4, 2026 with a towering mahjong-themed cake, a tile game with close friends, and a black-and-white Instagram photograph of herself leaping into a swimming pool.

The birthday cake was decorated with pink flowers, miniature mahjong tiles, and an illustration of a hummingbird. The hummingbird was suggested by Hello! magazine as a possible tribute to Meghan's son, Prince Archie, who is six this year Hello!. The cake itself was a callback to a hobby Meghan introduced to the public in her 2025 Netflix lifestyle series, With Love, Meghan. In the series, she revealed that she and a group of friends had recently learned to play mahjong — a traditional Chinese tile-based game for four players — and had nicknamed themselves the Maj Squad.

That friendship group was on display for the birthday. Close friend Tracy Robbins shared a photo montage on social media showing Meghan blowing out candles and playing mahjong with friends Hello!. The same circle — Robbins, Victoria Jackson, and Jennifer Rudolph Walsh — had joined Meghan for a mahjong game night filmed for an episode of With Love, Meghan. On the show, Walsh described the group as "a cheerleading group for each other, always helping each other out" Hello!.

Meghan marked the day on her own Instagram account (@meghan), posting a black-and-white photograph of herself leaping into a swimming pool with the caption "Thank you for the birthday love!" Hello!. She also shared an Instagram reel captioned "in birthday girl mode" showing her shimmying around the home she shares with Prince Harry Realtor.com. The posts confirmed the celebration through her own first-party channel Instagram.

Meghan's lifestyle brand, As Ever, joined the tributes. The brand's account posted "Happy birthday to our founder, @meghan" and "Lighting No. 084 to celebrate!", referencing a signature candle scent from the As Ever line Hello!.

The mahjong theme marks a shift from last year's celebration. For her 44th birthday in August 2025, Meghan dined at Funke, an Italian restaurant in Los Angeles, and posted a photo of a cake topped with yellow flowers Hello!. Her documented cake preferences also include London-based Luminary Bakery and Violet Cakes, both of which she has publicly endorsed Hello!.

This year's celebration was a home affair — tiles, candles, friends, and a jump in the pool.