'Feminist Princess' 'Royal Rule-Breaker' 'Duchess Difficult' ' Breath Of Fresh Air

As Meghan Markle prepares to spend her first official royal Christmas at Sandringham, Katie Nicholl gives the inside story on how the royal family are tackling those riftrumours – and what the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have in store for 2019…

TO SAY IT’S been an eventful year for the Duchess of Sussex is an understatement. After the royal wedding, there was her first overseas tour to Australia and New Zealand in October alongside Prince Harry. A month earlier, she’d launched her debut charity initiative Together, a cookbook released to raise funds for victims of the Grenfell tragedy. And who can forget the couple’s pregnancy announcement? So it came as no surprise that last week Meghan was shortlisted for Time magazine’s ‘Person of the Year’, just after being crowned the most Googled woman of 2018.

In the 12 months that has seen Meghan become a fully-fledged royal, she’s been described as a royal rule-breaker, a game changer, a feminist princess, a revolutionary and then, more recently, a ‘difficult’ duchess. It’s proof that a lot can happen in a year. This time last year, Harry and Meghan had only just announced their engagement. The former Suits actress was preparing to attend her first family occasion with her new in-laws: staying at Anmer Hall, William and Kate’s Norfolk home, and attending a few royal engagements.

At the Christmas Day church service (where Harry had to remind Meghan to curtsey in front of the Queen), it seemed a new and exciting era for the monarchy was beginning. As Meghan, Harry, Kate and William casually walked to church together laughing and joking, it prompted the media to coin the phrase ‘the Fab Four’.

But as the public now know, behind palace walls it hasn’t all been plain sailing. Multiple royal sources have revealed that there have been rifts and tensions between the four – as well as the Kensington Palace officials who counsel them.

So as the royal couples prepare to join the Queen again (William and Kate are believed to have changed their plans to spend the Christmas break at the Middletons to stem headlines about a feud), what can we expect?