As the second series of Meghan Markle's With Love, Meghan, drops on Netflix, viewers have once again been treated to an intimate look into the Duchess of Sussex's post-royal life. Joined by celebrity guests and high-profile chefs, Meghan's series is filled with cooking and laughter. While she offers carefully curated titbits about her life with Prince Harry in the Netflix series, Meghan dropped a major bombshell in an interview promoting the show. The mother-of-two revealed that she felt she was leading an "inauthentic" life as a royal -- and lifted the lid on the one rule she hated.
Speaking with The Circuit's Emily Chang in a segment called 'Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, on Life and Business Beyond the Royal Spotlight', Meghan talked about the importance of authenticity. She also revealed that she didn't feel that she was being her authentic self while being in the royal family, with Emily Chang noting that there's an inherent tension in being relatable while also being a duchess.
Meghan asserted that she was just being herself but added: "It was different several years ago, I couldn't be as vocal." Meghan also revealed the one rule that she hated, saying: "I had to wear nude pantyhose all the time… that was not very myself," she told Emily.
"That felt a little bit inauthentic, but that's a silly example, but that's an example of when you're able to dress the way you want to dress, you're able to say the things that are true and you're able to show up in a space really organically and authentically, that's being comfortable in your own skin." She added: "Right now, I don't feel I need to prove anything."
"Wearing tights isn't a protocol as such, but it has been viewed as unwritten rule that royal ladies wear tights during public engagements, with the likes of the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Edinburgh following the late Queen Elizabeth II's lead," explains HELLO!'s royal reporter, Danielle Stacey. "We have seen a few occasions when the royals have chosen to go bare legged, but this is is generally for less formal engagements."
© Getty
© GettyThe royal family's fashion protocols
The royal family are known to have a host of strict fashion protocols when attending official events, key engagements and royal tours. For example, the late Queen wasn't a fan of colourful nail polish and stipulated that only natural-looking nail coloured polish is permitted. The Queen's personal favourite was said to be Essie’s 'Ballet Slippers' – a pale pink shade.
© Oli ScarffAnother royal fashion stipulation includes the requirement that royals travel with a spare black outfit in case a member of the family dies. This way, when they arrive back in the country, they are dressed appropriately to fit the sombre occasion. The rule emerged when the then–Princess Elizabeth was in Kenya when her father passed away in 1952. She did not have any black mourning-appropriate outfits packed with her and had to wait inside the plane for one to be delivered before stepping out.
