Meghan Markle Reveals the Exact Moment She Fell in Love with Prince Harry: 'We Met In...'
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s fairytale love story began in July 2016 when they met on a blind date arranged by a mutual friend. A year later, they announced their engagement and tied the knot in May 2018 in a grand royal wedding. Seven years into their marriage and with two children, Markle recently reflected on her journey with Harry in Season 2 of her Netflix cooking show, With Love, Meghan. In a conversation with guest Tan France, she revealed she fell head over heels for the Duke on the third date.
Under Markle and Harry's new multi-year agreement with Netflix, season 2 of With Love, Meghan aired on August 26. As reported by PEOPLE, during a chat about meeting their respective spouses, France asked Markle, "Now I can’t help but ask personal questions — I’m known for it. Was there a moment you were like, ‘I know that I love this guy?'" With a smile, the Duchess replied, "Yes. That was our third date." She added of their time in Harry's 'special' place, "We met in Botswana, and we camped for five days together. You really get to know somebody when you’re in a little tent together and there’s like, 'What is that outside the tent?’ That’s an elephant. Are we gonna be safe?"
Botswana has always held a special place in Harry's heart, as he frequently visits Africa for his charitable work. The Duke, too, had echoed his wife’s sentiments during his 2017 engagement interview. He told the BBC, "And then it was, I think about three, maybe four weeks later, that I managed to persuade her to come and join me in Botswana. And we camped out with each other under the stars... she came and joined me for five days out there, which was absolutely fantastic." Markle's engagement ring also features a diamond sourced from Botswana, and the couple later returned for a longer trip to celebrate her 36th birthday.
In the couple's 2022 Netflix documentary, Harry & Meghan, the two revealed how they deeply fell in love on their third date in Botswana. As per Town & Country magazine, Harry said, "This woman that I've only met twice. She's coming to Botswana and we're going to be living in a tent for five days." He continued, "That was when it just hit me, like, 'Okay, this girl, this woman is amazing, is everything I've been looking for, and she's so comfortable and so relaxed in my company.'" Meanwhile, Markle gushed that she enjoyed being completely by herself with Harry.
Coming back to Markle's Netflix cooking show, France also asked the Duchess who said 'I love you' first in their relationship, to which she replied that Harry professed his love for her. France then joked, "Oh, that’s nice. That is really… You started to blush. I will stop this line of questioning." Later in the segment, he taught the Duchess how to make coconut-crusted, custardy French toast and puff-pastry apple pies.