Prince Harry tried to warn Meghan Markle about royal life and the scrutiny it would bring before the couple married. It has been just over eight years since Harry and Meghan announced their engagement to the world on November 27, 2017.

That day saw the couple sit down with the BBC for an interview during which Harry said to his then future wife: “I tried to warn you as much as possible but I think both of us were totally surprised by the reaction after the first five, six months which we had to ourselves [and] what actually happened from then.”

Harry was reflecting on the months the couple spent together before their relationship was leaked to the press in autumn 2016.

The prince said he and Meghan were “totally unprepared” for what happened next, while she spoke of a misconception that she would be better able to cope with the attention because of her fame as an actor.

She said: “I’ve never been part of tabloid culture. I’ve never been in pop culture to that degree and lived [a] relatively quiet life, even though I focused so much on my job.”

Meghan went on to say she made a choice not to read anything, be it positive or negative, adding the couple opted to focus all their energy on nurturing their relationship.

The then-future Duchess of Sussex also spoke of her pride in her roots, telling the BBC that she felt disheartened by comments about her being mixed-race.

Harry at that time predicted Meghan would be “unbelievably good” at being a working royal, adding that it came as a relief to him.

Meghan and Harry would go on to marry in May 2018, with the Duchess giving birth to their first child, Prince Archie, in May 2019 and second, Princess Lilibet, in June 2021.

By that time, the pair had announced they were stepping back from their duties as senior, working royals and moved to North America.

Most recently, Meghan shared intimate details of her married and family life with Harper’s Bazaar. She told the magazine: “[Harry] loves me so boldly, fully, and he also has a different perspective because he sees media that I wouldn’t.

“No one in the world loves me more than him, so I know he’s always going to make sure that he has my back.”

Meghan also voiced her wish that Lilibet and Archie would see “the value of being brave” amid the everyday challenges of growing up.