Royal baby 'secret is out': Bookmakers stop takings on gender after 'avalanche' of bets

11 April 2019, 09:30

A bookmaker has pulled all bets on the gender of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's baby amid claims that the 'secret is out'.

William Hill saw an 'avalanche' on bets that the new royal baby would be a girl on Tuesday afternoon (April 9).

The bookmakers pulled their market for the gender of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's baby after a flurry of bets lead them to believe that the news had leaked that the royal baby is female.

“People were only betting one way and we ended up cutting the odds of the baby being a girl to 2/5,” said William Hill spokesman Joe Crilly.

“When people were still desperate to back that price, we decided to take evasive action and pull the market completely. As far as we are concerned, the secret is out.”

Now that bookies believe the baby is a girl, odds on female baby names have soared, with Diana leading the way.

Diana leads the way at 4/1 with Victoria 8/1 second favourite and Alice rounding off the top three at 10/1.

First look at Meghan and Harry's new home Frogmore Cottage

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What an incredibly special surprise the grassroots led #globalsussexbabyshower was last Sunday! The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are immensely grateful for the outpouring of love and support in anticipation of the birth of their first child. In lieu of sending gifts, the couple have long planned to encourage members of the public to make donations to select charities for children and parents in need. If you already made a donation, the couple send you their greatest thanks. If you are thinking about it, they ask that you kindly consider the following organisations they’ve selected, which we will highlight here over the next few days: @thelunchboxfund @littlevillagehq @wellchild @baby2baby The Duke and Duchess remain appreciative for your warm wishes and kindness during this especially happy time in their lives! Thank you for sharing the love ❤️

A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Apr 5, 2019 at 8:17am PDT

William Hill's betting odds on Harry and Meghan's baby (April 9) are:

4/1 Diana

8/1 Victoria

10/1 Alice

12/1 Grace

12/1 Isobella

14/1 Elizabeth

16/1 Alexandra

16/1 Arthur

16/1James

16/1 Mary