Ever since Meghan Markle and Prince Harry announced their engagement in 2017, the pair have been subjected to an avalanche of scrutiny, discriminatory attacks and been at the centre of countless rumours surrounding their relationship to the wider royal family.
The pair first met in 2016 and tied the knot in 2018 and, just two years after that, they stepped down as senior royals in 2020 due to media intrusion.
Following the engagement announcement in 2017, the pair sat down for an interview with the BBC and discussed their thoughts on Kate Middleton and Prince William.
Explaining his relationship with Meghan, Harry said: "I'd been seeing her for a period of time when I literally didn't tell anybody at all. And then William was longing to meet her and so was Catherine.
"So, you know, being our neighbours we managed to get that in a couple of - well, quite a few times now and Catherine has been absolutely amazing."
Advert
During the interview, the Suits star was asked about her first interaction with Kate, prompting her to share a three-word response showing her thoughts on the monarch.
"She’s been wonderful," Meghan said at the time, while Harry continued: "William as well, you know, fantastic support."
Opening up some more about meeting Kate and Will for the first time, Meghan recalled in the Harry and Meghan documentary, which hit our screens in 2022: "It's so funny if I look back at it now, because now I know so much, and I'm so glad I didn't then, because I could just authentically be myself without so much preparedness."
Advert
She continued: "Even when Will and Kate came over, and I had met her for the first time... They came for dinner, I remember I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot.
"I was a hugger, always been a hugger. I didn't realise that that is really jarring for a lot of Brits."
Elsewhere in the Netflix doc, Meghan revealed she was 'surprised' to find out how the royal family conduct themselves to the public is very similar to how they actually are in their private lives.
Advert
She shared: "I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside. That there is a forward-facing way of being, and then you close the door and you go, 'Oh, great. Okay, we can relax now.'
"But that formality carries over on both sides, and that was surprising to me."
Meghan also opened up about what it was like spending her very first Christmas with the royals: "I remember so vividly the first Christmas at Sandringham.
"Calling my mum, and she's like, 'How's it going?' And I said, "Oh my gosh, it's amazing.' It's just like a big family, like I always wanted. There was just this constant movement and energy and fun."
Topics: Celebrity, Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle, Royal Family, UK News, Prince Harry, Prince William
Rhiannon Ingle