Meghan Markle

Background

Meghan Markle has won the hearts of thousands around the world. She is widely known for her sense of style, kindness, generosity, and beauty, and continues to be a role model for women everywhere. Markle was born on August 4, 1981, in Los Angeles, California. Her zodiac sign is Leo and her ethnicity is mixed race. She is the daughter of Thomas Markle Sr. and Doria Ragland, and she has two half-siblings on her father’s side. Markle’s first introduction to the television industry was visiting the sets of “Married… with Children,” where her father worked as a director of photography and lighting, as a child. Before acting, she was an intern junior press officer at the American embassy in Argentina and considered a career in politics, but she was unable to proceed with her career and focused on acting, graduating from Northwestern University with a double major in theater and international studies.

Early in her career, Markle faced difficulties in getting roles due to her ethnic ambiguity and worked other jobs between acting jobs to support herself. Markle was mostly cast in small roles in both film and T.V. until 2011 when she landed the role of Rachel Zane in the legal drama “Suits,” which marked her breakthrough. She left the show after seven seasons, in 2017. During this time, she also founded and ran “The Tig,” a lifestyle website and blog, which allowed her to release two fashion collections with Reitmans, a Canadian clothing company.

In 2016, one of Markle’s friends set her up on a blind date with another friend, who turned out to be Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. The two hit it off and their relationship was confirmed in November of the same year. The following year, the couple announced that they were engaged, and Markle announced that she would retire from acting. Her first official public appearance with the British royal family was in December of the same year, during a World AIDS Day walkabout event in Nottingham. In total, she appeared at 26 public engagements as Prince Harry’s fiancé. The couple got married in March 2018, in a ceremony that was broadcasted live on television. Through her marriage to Prince Harry, Markle is now known as the Duchess of Sussex. After their wedding, Markle’s first official appearance as the Duchess of Sussex was in May 2018, celebrating the charity work of Prince Charles. That same year, Markle had her first official trip abroad as a royal to Dublin, Ireland, alongside her husband. The couple also traveled to Sydney, Australia for the 2018 Invictus Games, as part of a Pacific tour that included Australia, Fiji, Tonga, and New Zealand. They were greeted warmly by crowds and announced Markle’s pregnancy. She has also participated in her husband’s work as youth ambassador to the Commonwealth, which included overseas tours. The Duke and Duchess created an Instagram social media account, which broke the record for the fastest account to date to reach a million followers.

In May 2019, Markle gave birth to a son named Archie, who is seventh in line to the British throne. That same year, Markle, Harry, and Archie embarked on a Southern African tour that included Malawi, Angola, South Africa, and Botswana, which marked their first official tour as a family. However, in January 2020, the couple announced that they were stepping back from their role as senior members of the royal family, and would balance their time between the United Kingdom and North America. They were to cease to undertake royal duties, would no longer receive the relevant financial support, and would retain their H.R.H. stylings but not use them. Markle’s final solo engagement as a senior royal was a visit to Robert Clack School on March 7, 2020, ahead of International Women’s Day. In September of that same year, the couple signed a private commercial deal with the streaming company Netflix to develop content for the platform. The following month, Markle and Harry signed a multi-year deal with audio streaming company Spotify to produce and host their own programs through Archewell Audio, their audio producing company. A holiday special was released by the couple on the service in December of that same year. In 2021, Oprah Winfrey conducted an interview with the couple on a television special titled “Oprah with Meghan and Harry,” where Markle opened up about her negative experience being a member of the British Royal Family, including contemplating suicide and a perceived lack of protection for her and her son. Markle’s podcast, “Archetypes,” is set to premiere in the summer of 2022.