When the late Queen Elizabeth II first met her grandson’s new girlfriend, she knew Meghan Markle was someone very special. A successful actress and charity campaigner years before she slid into Prince Harry’s DMs, insiders also say the late Monarch was well aware of how Meghan’s presence could benefit the Royal Family.
And according to Princess Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell, she even decided to make an unprecedented offer to Meghan in a bid to ensure she would live a happy live within The Firm. Speaking to Mirror US, he said: “The Queen was very gracious and very kind to Meghan. She even said to Meghan, ‘You can continue acting if you like, continue your career.'”
However, Meghan decided not to take her grandmother-in-law up on the offer, instead focusing on her duties as a working royal. She spoke about the decision during her engagement interview, explaining: “I don’t see it as giving anything up, I just see it as a change.”
She went on to add: “It’s a new chapter. And also keep in mind I [have] been working on my show for seven years. So we’re very, very fortunate to be able to have that sort of longevity on a series and for me, once we hit the 100-episode marker, I thought, ‘You know what, I have I have ticked this box, and I feel really proud of the work I’ve done there, and now it’s time to, as [Harry] said, “work as a team with [him].”‘”
And Meghan certainly made an impression during her short time in the royal gig. A few months after the Royal Wedding, her first royal patronages were announced, and each of them focused on an area she’d already expressed a passion for. The first two – The National Theatre and The Association of Commonwealth Universities – were handed to her by the Queen herself. She also picked two charities, which represented her strong feminist views and her love for animals – Smart Works and Mayhew.
Paul Burrell believes it was comments like the one the late Queen made to Meghan that proved how much she wanted them as working members of the family. He says: “It’s mind-boggling the amount of goodwill which Meghan and Harry have thrown away. I think that’s why it came as a particular blow to the Queen when Harry left the Royal Family because she didn’t want him to. She wanted him to stay, and she tried her hardest to persuade them to stay.”
