08 March 2024 , 07:00
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Meeting a partner's family for the first time can be a daunting experience - not least for Meghan Markle.
In the early days of dating Prince Harry, she was introduced to his royal relatives such as the late Queen, King Charles and then eventually Prince William and his wife Kate. Many thought that Meghan and the Princess of Wales would be able to bond over their shared experience of marrying into the Royal Family. But it seems the two women never really hit it off and due to vastly different personalities - and even during their very first meeting, Meghan suffered a 'jarring' moment on seeing Kate for the first time.
Meghan and Kate with Prince William and Prince Harry (PA)Speaking in episode two of the six-part Harry & Meghan Netflix, Meghan explained: "When Will and Kate came over, and I met her for the first time, they came over for dinner, I remember I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot. I was a hugger. I've always been a hugger, I didn't realise that that is really jarring for a lot of Brits.
"I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside. There is a forward-facing way of being, and then you close the door and go 'You can relax now', but that formality carries over on both sides. And that was surprising to me." Meanwhile, Harry went into more detail surrounding the two women in his memoir Spare, as he recounts several times that his wife Meghan seemed at loggerheads with his sister-in-law Kate in the early days of their romance.
He says the two women had a row over bridesmaid dresses in the lead-up to his wedding that left Meghan in tears and that Kate "grimaced" when the duchess borrowed her lipgloss. And he writes how Kate asked for an apology from Meghan when she accused her of having "baby brain" following the birth of Prince Louis.
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And Harry also pinpoints the exact moment he realised Meghan and Kate might not have been on the same page during the very same dinner. In Spare, Harry notes how Meghan cooked and that all seemed to be going well as they chatted about Wimbledon and the legal drama Suits.
He writes: "The only possibly discordant note I could think of was the marked difference in how the two women dressed, which both of them seemed to notice. Meg: ripped jeans, barefoot. Kate: done up to the nines. No big deal, I thought."