Why Meghan Markle's British Friend Warned Her Against Marrying Harry
Meghan Markle is opening up about the pressures of getting acclimated to royal life.
In a new clip from the ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, the Duchess of Sussex says that when she first met Prince Harry (who she calls by the adorable nickname "H"), most of her friends were excited to see her so happy — but a British friend warned her not to get involved with the royal.
"When I first met my now-husband, my friends were really happy because I was so happy… But my British friend said to me, 'I’m sure he’s great but you shouldn’t do it, because the British tabloids will destroy your life,'" she said.
'My British friend said to me 'I'm sure he's great but you shouldn't do it''
The Duchess of Sussex reveals she was warned not to marry Prince Harry because 'British tabloids will destroy your life' #HarryAndMeghan https://t.co/GWs5KfuovM pic.twitter.com/SmUl3ofSnd— ITV News (@itvnews) October 20, 2019
"And I very naively — I’m an American we don’t have that there — said, ‘What are you talking about? That doesn’t make any sense! I’m not in tabloids!’ I didn’t get it. So, it’s been… yeah, it’s been complicated," she said.
She also discussed how she deals with the negative press she's been subjected to since becoming a royal, telling ITV's Tom Bradby, “It’s really hard to understand what it’s like. I know what it seems like it should be, but it’s a very different thing. I have said for a long time to H, that’s what I call him, ‘It’s not enough to just survive something. That’s not the point of life. You have got to thrive. You have got to feel happy.’ I really tried to adopt this British sensibility of a ‘stiff upper lip.’ I really tried, but I think that what that does internally is probably really damaging. I never thought that this would be easy, but I thought it would be fair. And that’s the part that’s really hard to reconcile.”
'I really tried to adopt this British sensibility of a stiff upper lip'
The Duchess of Sussex admits she's tried a coping mechanism to manage the pressures that come with marrying Prince Harry #HarryAndMeghan https://t.co/GWs5KfuovM pic.twitter.com/XctGTpk94l— ITV News (@itvnews) October 20, 2019
Since becoming involved with Prince Harry, Meghan has dealt with criticism and harassment; in 2016, when they began dating, he issued an unprecedented statement confirming their relationship and criticizing the "abuse and harassment" she received. The negativity, unfortunately, has not died down — since marrying Prince Harry, the duchess has been subjected to criticism over everything from closing her own car doors to wearing jeans and nail polish, and has had her personal family issues aired in tabloids.
RELATED: Prince Harry Discusses Moving to Africa with Meghan Markle and Baby Archie
Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, which aired in the U.K. on Sunday night, will air in the U.S. on Wednesday, Oct. 23 on ABC.
