It was in mid-February, when Prince Philip, 99, was hospitalised, getting treated for an infection. In recent developments, Queen Elizabeth’s husband underwent a procedure for a pre-existing heart condition and is expected to remain in the hospital for some days.
Amid Philip’s health condition, Queen Elizabeth had received a ‘check in’ call from Meghan Markle, as revealed by The Duchess of Sussex on Oprah With Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special.
Meghan recounted, “I just picked up the phone and I called The Queen just to check in. That’s what we do. It’s like being able to default to not having to every moment go, ‘Is that appropriate?'” Markle further shed light on her equation with The Queen, confessing, “The Queen, for example, has always been wonderful to me.”
Recalling one of her first joint engagements together with The Queen, Meghan remembers how Prince Harry’s grandmom asked Markle to join her as she went on the train. The duo had breakfast together that morning and The Queen gave Meghan a beautiful gift.
Moreover, Markle admitted that she just “really loved being in her company.” When they were in the car together going between engagements, The Queen gifted The Duchess of Sussex some beautiful pearl earrings and a matching necklace.
“And she has a blanket that sits across her, her knees, for warmth and it was chilly and she was like, Meghan, come on, and put it over my knees as well,” Markle fondly remembered. Meghan also confided how there wasn’t a lot of anxiety as one would have expected when she met The Queen.
However, when Harry asked her if she knows how to “curtsy”, Markle was left stumped as she remembered telling Harry, “I thought, this is your grandmother.” Harry reminded Meghan that his grandmother is The Queen after which even Fergie, Prince Andrew’s ex-wife enquired if she Markle knew how to curtsy. “Apparently I did a very deep courtesy — I don’t remember it.
It was lovely and easy and thank god I hadn’t known a lot about the family — I would have been so in my head about it,” Meghan admitted. While Markle has indeed met many celebrities, having lived in LA, meeting the royal family was a “whole different ballgame” for the Duchess.
As for Harry’s current equation with his grandmom, who he is very close to, The Duke of Sussex revealed, “My grandmother and I have a really good relationship and an understanding. And I have a deep respect for her. She’s my colonel in chief, right? She always will be.” Harry also added that he’s spoken to his grandmom more this year than he has “in many, many years.”