Meghan Markle has stolen not only the heart of Prince Harry, but also literally everyone. From her rise to fame in Suits to becoming a Global Ambassador for World Vision, she’s one very impressive lady. Learn more about the 36-year-old actress below:
Photography: Instagram/@meghanmarkle 1 She has an unusual skill
While auditioning for acting gigs, Meghan was a freelance calligrapher, telling Esquire it was her ‘pseudo waitressing job’. Might be very handy when writing wedding invitations…?
2 She met her boyfriend, Prince Harry, through his old school friend
She’s close friends with fashion designer Misha Nonoo, who was married to Alexander Gilkes, one of Harry’s school friends. We wish our ‘friends of friends’ were so well connected…
Photography: Instagram/@meghanmarkle 3 Ellen DeGeneres convinced her to adopt her dog
She revealed in an interview with Best Health magazine that she was at a rescue shelter and Ellen happened to be there when she met her Lab/Shepherd mix, Bogart. Ellen told her to “Take the dog!”, so she did. As you do.
4 She’s an ambassador for World Vision
Meghan became a World Vision Global Ambassador after travelling to Rwanda in 2016. She taught children to paint with watercolours using clean water from a new pipeline in their community.
Photography: Getty Images 5 She’s older than Prince Harry
Her birthday is August 4 1981, making her 36 years old, which is just over three years older than her lucky boyfriend Prince Harry.
6 Meghan is not her real name
Meghan is only her middle name. She ironically shares her real birth name with the Suits character who shot her to fame: her full name is Rachel Meghan Markle.
Photography: Instagram/@meghanmarkle 7 Her childhood nickname was ‘Flower’
She revealed on her (now defunct) blog, The Tig that her mother used to call her ‘Flower’. She certainly lives up to it, posting many pretty pictures of blooms (we wonder how many are from Prince Harry!).
8 Prince Harry had a crush on her for two years
In the Channel 4 documentary When Harry Met Meghan, royal expert Katie Nicholl reveals that when asked his ideal girl on a night out, Harry said “Meghan Markle from Suits“. Even our prince gets schoolboy crushes, eh?
Photography: Bang Showbiz 9 She was the most googled actress of 2016
Yep, the tech giant revealed that her name was the most searched-for actress last year. Seems like we’re not the only curious ones…
10 She’s BFFs with Serena Williams
They met playing a charity football match together, and now Meghan supports the tennis star at grand slams and fashion shows. Squad goals, much?
Photography: Bang Showbiz 11 It’s not just her screen character who’s smart
She has a Communications degree from Northwestern University, and hasn’t ruled out doing a Masters degree. Beauty AND brains? It isn’t hard to see what Prince Harry sees in her.
12 Meghan was born in LA
But her mother, Doria Radlan, is African-American and her father is Dutch-Irish. She speaks of her bi-racial identity as “quite a conundrum”, and tells Allure “my pet peeve is when my skin tone is changed and my freckles are airbrushed out of a photo shoot”.
Photography: NBC 13 Her early career wasn’t quite so glam
One of her early acting gigs was as a ‘briefcase girl’ on Deal or No Deal. Proving that everyone has to put the work in to get to where they are now – we applaud her.
14 She was first introduced to showbiz by her dad
Her father, Thomas W. Markle, is an Emmy award-winning lighting director. He would often bring his daughter to the set of Married… with Children, the TV show he worked on.
