As the world spent the last year watching and waiting and whispering about the speculated – and finally confirmed – relationship between actress Meghan Markle and Prince Henry “Harry” of Wales, the 36-year-old Suits star remained quiet.
She stayed silent even as she was hounded by nasty headlines and internet trolls and Harry, 33, issued a statement confirming their relationship in a bid to stop the hate in November last year. She has kept outwardly calm, professional and, above all, sincerely private… Until now.
In her first public acknowledgment of her relationship with the prince in a Vanity Fair cover story, Markle has said they’re in love and had been dating for six months before the media caught on.
She said she hopes people understand this is “their time”, perhaps in reference to endless media speculation about whether or not the Prince will (or has already) proposed.
“We’re a couple,” she explains. “We’re in love. I’m sure there will be a time when we will have to come forward and present ourselves and have stories to tell, but I hope what people will understand is that this is our time. This is for us. It’s part of what makes it so special, that it’s just ours. But we’re happy. Personally, I love a great love story.”
She spoke about the racism she's endured since being the centre of such a media storm, and what it felt like to be brought up as a biracial girl in California.
"[One Christmas my father brought me] a black mum doll, a white dad doll and a child in each colour," Markle said. "My dad had taken the [Barbie Doll] sets apart and customised my family."
Finally, Markle said the media attention hasn't changed her, with her friends and family keeping her grounded.
"I think it’s really simple," she said. "We’re two people who are really happy and in love. We were very quietly dating for about six months before it became news, and I was working during that whole time, and the only thing that changed was people’s perception."
"Nothing about me changed. I’m still the same person that I am, and I’ve never defined myself by my relationship."
It's what we love about her, and what will make her (hopefully, one day) an excellent princess.
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LISTEN: Meghan Markle is the Princess we need.
Top Comments
Regarding the black and white dolls, we are Anglo-Celtic, but my kids had "black" dolls too, as part of their upbringing.
You've got to wonder if the royal family knew about this interview before it came out. They control media appearances so carefully, which is going to clash with Meghan's independence. While I hope it ends happily, I honestly can't see a bold and independent woman in charge of her own career and publicity docilely fitting into such a rigid and controlled structure.
I've wondered that too. Methinks Fergie was too much of a live wire for them too.