How the Queen has taken Meghan Markle under her wing

Watch the full interview with Prince Charles’ former butler Grant Harrold on Yahoo News UK’s brand new show The Royal Box at the bottom of this article.

Watching Meghan Markle in action, it’s evident the new royal is easing into her new role seamlessly.

Since announcing her engagement to Prince Harry in November 2017, the royal appears to have mastered royal decorum. She smiles, waves and courtesies without breaking a sweat – a level of stamina that perhaps she built up during long days on the set of ‘Suits’.

But the newly-titled Duchess of Sussex could likely still do with some help in adjusting to royal life and the expectations that come with it – and that’s where the Queen comes in.

Prince Charles’ former butler Grant Harrold explains that new members of the royal family learn royal etiquette by watching practiced members.

Harrold told Yahoo UK: “Meghan will learn from the other members of the royal family, which will be following them round, and copying the way they do things.

“She’s got a wonderful sister-in-law for this, and of course the Queen, because the Queen is the perfect member of the family to follow.”

Meghan is set for some one-to-one time with Her Majesty this week, when she joins the Queen for a trip to Cheshire.

The pair will travel, overnight, on the royal train (a privilege that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry haven’t even experienced) and spend Thursday together attending a number of engagements.

“What better person to do your first trip of this kind with than the Queen? It’s perfect.” says Harrold.

“It’s not a joint thing, it’s not her and Harry. It’s just Meghan and the Queen so it will give her an amazing opportunity to spend time with the Queen in private and in public.”

The Duchess’ upcoming trip to Cheshire isn’t the only honour she’s received. Meghan was invited to Sandringham for Christmas in December 2017; an honour usually reserved for those who are married into the family.

“It’s really important because it also show’s Meghan that, yes, it’s the Queen, but it’s saying ‘look, there’s nothing scary about us, we’re a family and you’re part of that’,” Harrold says.

“It’s not holding her hand, it is just guiding her and having the professionals with her to keep her right and make sure it works.”

Responding to rumours that the Queen is putting Meghan through a six-month royal bootcamp, Harrold reveals that there are no special classes for budding royals.

“There are no special classes, there are no special manuals. Somebody might be there if she’s got any specific questions,” he tells us.

Grant guesses that Meghan will learn most of the royal etiquette through her husband Prince Harry, who explained ins-and-outs of the day to his wife at Meghan’s first Trooping the Colour this weekend.

“For the general day-to-day dos and don’ts, I think it will be things that she learns from the rest of the family.

“You don’t need a special advisor on this when you’ve got your husband who’s been doing this job his whole life.”

Stay tuned for coverage on Meghan’s trip with the Queen.

Watch the episode 1 of The Royal Box in full here:

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The Queen and Meghan Markle are taking a joint trip to Cheshire