Secret meaning behind Meghan Markle’s cryptic post revealed by Oprah after she ‘mocked’ new surname

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's long-term friend and confidant Oprah Winfrey has shed some light on one of the latter's recent social media posts.

Back in Easter, Meghan took to Instagram where she shared with her four million followers a short clip of her gasping in amazement after stumbling upon a line of waddling ducks crossing her path.

She captioned the sweet clip: "Wishing you a Happy Easter full of love….and surprises!"

Oprah has since offered some extra insight into the story behind the post, something she shared on Kelly Ripa's Let's Talk Off Camera podcast.

The 71-year-old former talk show host explained to listeners: "I get a call from Harry, Prince Harry, on Easter Saturday, and he says, 'Sorry to bother you, O, but we have a duck problem here."

In short, Harry explained how a duck in their garden had ducklings and that he was keen on transferring them to somewhere more suitable, with Oprah's pond seeming like the best bet.

Continuing the tickling anecdote, Oprah recalled how she tried to explain her friend Gayle King's grandchildren were coming over: "I said, 'Wait until I can get the kids to come down to the pond so they can see you put the ducks in the pond.' And he goes, 'No, we’re coming right away, we’re coming over!'"

But things clearly didn't go all that smoothly.

"As he opens the door, the mama duck flies out. And he’s got all the baby ducks in a box. We’re chasing the mama duck who is in the front yard and has flown to the other side. We’ve got her ducks," Oprah recounted.

"Harry’s running after, Meghan gets out, she’s running after, chasing the mom and trying to get her to come back to her ducks."

The host then laughed: "The ducks also hit the jackpot. They’re like, 'Wait a minute, we show up at Prince Harry’s house and now we’re at Oprah’s!' Excuse me. That duck knew what it was doing when it laid its eggs."

Kelly then asked Oprah whether she'd appreciate it if someone gifted her baby chicks one day to which she joked back: "I'd run them straight to the Sussexes."

She then repeated the couple's surname again, but instead slurred the 's' and added a couple more 'x's' to as a joke due to the moniker's apparently tricky pronunciation.

Oprah did make it clear, though, that her comments were made in jest with a spokesperson for the Sussexes later dismissing rumours that the couple weren't happy with her remarks, saying it was 'categorically untrue'.