Meghan Markle reveals she started planning her wedding at 14 – and that Prince Harry feels lucky to have her
MEGHAN Markle has told how she started planning her wedding aged only 14.
The Duchess of Sussex revealed how she wanted her glam nuptials at the five-star Hotel Bel-Air with a "swan lake" and "strapless poufy" dress.
Speaking on her latest 50-minute episode of her Spotify podcast series with Mindy Kaling, Meghan revealed how she had taken the school assignment to plan her wedding seriously.
And young Meghan's plans are a far cry from her actual wedding to Prince Harry in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle - with the duchess wearing an elegant Clare Waight Keller gown as the couple tied the knot in front of millions.
The podcast - featuring special guest Mindy Kaling - also saw Meghan reveal how Harry felt like he was the lucky one to marry her after being told she was the one who was fortunate to have married a prince.
The episode opens with Meghan explaining how she was asked to plan her future wedding as a religious studies assignment in Catholic school.
She says: "When I was 14, I planned my wedding. Not my actual wedding, that would have been a bit harder to imagine.
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"This wedding was an assignment from my religion two class in catholic school.
"I wanted it to be at the Bel Air hotel, and there was a swan lake. I wanted the cake to be from Hanson's bakery.
"And the dress... Oh my goodness the dress was strapless and poufy and I had seen it in the bridal magazine.
"I bought it. Not the dress, but the bridal magazine.
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"I took this project seriously, I wanted to get an A. And I did. Maybe I got an A-minus."
She questioned why the assignment had even existed, saying: "At no point can you say 'Nope. My dream for the future is to be single'.
"The message even at my feminist all-girls school was as traditional as it gets. First comes love. Then comes marriage."
In the 50-minute episode titled The Stigma of the Singleton, Meghan also claims Harry told his wife he's "lucky to have her" after their romantic nuptials.
After she started dating Prince Harry, Meghan said she was told by royal fans: "Oh my god you're so lucky he chose you."
She added: "At a certain point, after you hear it a million times over, you're like, 'well, I chose him too'.
"But, thankfully, I have a partner who was countering that narrative for me and going 'They've got it all wrong. I'm the lucky one because you chose me'.
"But it is gendered and it's archetyped and stereotyped that you're so lucky, and it just feeds into this idea that you're waiting for someone to tell you that you're good enough, as opposed to knowing that you're good enough on your own."
Later in the podcast, Meghan tells her guest comedian Mindy Kaling how how she was a "shy loner"; who became "the smart one" by throwing herself into extra-curricular activities at school.
Mindy asks Meghan: "Were you not the pretty one growing up?"
The Duchess of Sussex replies: "No, god no. Ugly duckling. Not conventional beauty - maybe now that would be seen as beautiful.
"I had massive frizzy curly hair. I had a huge gap in my teeth.
"I was the smart one, forever and ever and ever. And then just sort of grew up."
She adds: "I never had anyone to sit with at lunch.
"I was always a little bit of a loner and really shy. I didn't know where I fit in.
"So I was like, oh I'll become president of the multicultural club, the president of sophomore class, of French club.
"And by doing that I had meetings at lunch time so I didn't have to worry about who I would sit with or what I would do."
Kaling said Meghan's admission made her "emotional" and adds: "You do seem so intimidating.
"Your life is together. You're so beautiful.
"It's nice to know that you were a lonely kid who didn't necessarily begin that way."
Meghan ends the discussion by saying: "I'm glad we both got to share with each other."
Earlier in their chat, Meghan tells Kaling how she was a "latch-key kid" growing up, who loved Archie Comics.
But the duchess insists she and Harry did not name their first son Archie after the graphic novels' protagonist.
Meghan adds: "For me, my parents split up when I was around two to three years old.
"I always wanted this cookie-cutter looking life. You looked at that... there's a boy in a letterman jacket.
"It was so - I romanticised it. It makes you have an idea of what you want your life to be like."
'UGLY DUCKLING'
Kaling cheekily asks Meghan if she "likes redheads" because of high school student Archie's flaming red locks.
The duchess - who is married to ginger haired Prince Harry - jokingly replied: "Yes."
Meghan and Harry are currently in the UK for a mini-tour - with the duchess last night giving a seven-minute speech at the One Young World summit.
She was slammed by fans for mentioning herself 54 times in the address.
But she shrugged off criticism this morning and a beaming Meghan was spotted glowing as she left Windsor with Prince Harry.
She and the Duke are now on their way to Dusseldorf, Germany, for the second stop of their mini-tour - a year before Harry's Invictus Games are held there.
Last night Meghan told the One Young World summit “it’s very nice to be back” before launching into a monologue about her time with the host charity.
Outside, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex received cheers and boos from onlookers as they were driven the 200 yards from a £500-a-room hotel to the youth gala at Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall.
Protesters waved placards including one accusing her of being a “Fake Royal”.
One demonstrator said: “It was odd that the whole speech was about herself. But that is Meghan.
“We watched it and have no idea what the charity is actually about.”
Several accused her of peddling lies and launching an attack on the royal family.
One woman said: “It’s all about the merch with her.
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“All she’s done is attack the royal family and now she’s just out to make money.”
The Sussexes, who have been blasted for using gas-guzzling private jets, took the train from London Euston to Manchester yesterday afternoon.
