Meghan Markle fans shocked after discovering unexpected first acting role

Fans have been left shocked upon discovering what US sitcom Meghan Markle starred in as her first acting role, as well as the huge involvement her father had.

When we think about Meghan Markle the actress, we tend to associate her with the well-known Rachel Zane, the character she played in Suits for the first seven seasons of the show.

But every actress has their debut, and it turns out that fans are only just realising which US sitcom she was heavily involved in from a young age.

Footage of her first ever on-screen appearance resurfaced last year, almost 30 years after the show had called it a day.

Meghan Markle spent a lot of her time around TV sets when she was younger, which helped her get her foot in the door early (Alberto Rodriguez/Variety via Getty Images)

The young budding actress can be seen in the background of a scene which starred Christina Applegate as Kelly Bundy.

Yep, US sitcom Married with Children was the show that gave Meghan her first foot in the door, but it wouldn't have been the case without a little help from her father.

Thomas Markle worked on the 1980's show as a camera operator.

Ed O'Neill, who starred in the sitcom, spoke about the revelation on an episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

He said: "By the way, she [Meghan] grew up on the set of Married With Children. Did you know that? Her father was a camera operator.

"And she used to come on the set in her little Catholic school uniform. She was, like, nine."

Meghan made an appearance during an episode in season nine, where she played a student.

Her dad helped her to land her debut role (USA Network)

Her father started out on the show as a lighting director, before quickly becoming the director of photography from the second season to the 10th.

Fans were quick to realise that they had missed her brief cameo, as one said: "When you actually remember that episode!"

And another added: "Aww so adorable."

During a 2018 interview with Esquire, Meghan herself spoke about her experiences on the show.

She said: "Every day after school for ten years, I was on the set of Married with Children, which is a really funny and perverse place for a little girl in a Catholic school uniform to grow up.

"There were a lot of times my dad would say, 'Meg, why don't you go and help with the craft services room over there? This is just a little off-colour for your 11-year-old eyes'."