A Very Special Bond

The speed of the evolution of actress Meghan Markle into royal Duchess of Sussex is dazzling to watch, and in many ways it is thanks to the Queen – her joyful supporter. Juliet Rieden reports.

- Juliet Rieden

The Queen giggling is not something we see very often. In public the Monarch is intense and solemn, as you would expect from the engagements she is called on to attend, and when photographed with her family she looks proud and patrician with rare knowing smiles spotted by the keenest royal watchers; that is until the Duchess of Sussex joined the fold. To those who know her, the Queen is famous for her dry sense of humour, a brilliant mimic with a fine nose for the ridiculous. So, it is rather special that Prince Harry’s new wife, the incredibly likeable 36-year-old Hollywood-raised actress, has tickled the Queen’s funny bone.

Last month Meghan joined her 92-year-old grand mother in-law for her first solo engagement with the Sovereign and The Australian Women’s Weekly was there to witness the landmark day. It was just weeks after the wedding and no doubt a nerve-wracking initiation for the newest addition to the Royal Firm. In a House of Windsor first, the Duchess spent the night before with Her Majesty on the royal train. This is an honour that has never been bestowed on Princes William and Harry, nor the Duchess of Cambridge, and underlines how keenly the Queen is embracing her grand daughter-in-law.