Watch & Learn,Meghan

The new duchess has been learning the ropes from the most senior royal as a caring queen takes her under her wing

- Kirstin Buick

FORGET cosy nights in with her husband at their new country bolthole in Oxfordshire or loved-up sessions in front of the TV at their city pad in Kensington Palace’s recently renovated Notting ham Cottage.

After a super-short, super-secret honeymoon abroad with Prince Harry, Meghan has spent her first weeks as a newlywed hard at work, thrust into the life of a full-time royal with breathless speed.

But it’s not hard to see why the powers that be in The Firm were keen to get the Duchess of Sussex show up and running – people just can’t get enough of her.

Cries of “Meghan! Meghan! Duchess!” hit fever pitch at her recent official outing in Cheshire, even though she had a far more senior royal at her side.

But Queen Elizabeth (92) is likely to have been delighted to have her new granddaughter-in-law steal the limelight – she’s singled Meghan (36) out for special treatment after all.

The palace PR machine had reportedly been touting the idea of a joint visit for a while but it was the queen herself who suggested it should be sooner rather than later, according to royal writer Richard Kay. Clearly seeing the potential the young American has to breathe yet more life into the once-dusty old monarchy, the queen has taken a personal interest in showing Meghan the ropes.

“The queen knows the possible pitfalls of not giving new members a guiding hand,” says Ingrid Seward, author of the recent biography of the queen and Prince Philip, My Husband and I. 

“It’s all about the monarchy. She can’t expect Meghan to know everything without being shown,” Seward adds.

And as Meghan and Harry will embark on their first royal tour – to Australia, Fiji, the Kingdom of Tonga and New Zealand – later this year she’ll want to have Meghan’s skills polished in a few short months.