How Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s engagement announcement compared to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s
Here, we take a look at how each couple handled their special day...
MEGHAN Markle and Prince Harry gave their first official TV interview after announcing their engagement yesterday.
The former Suits actress, 36, and the 33-year-old royal held hands, giggled and shared gushing anecdotes about one another during their chat with the BBC’s Mishal Husian.
The loved-up scenes were reminiscent of those involving Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2010.
The love between each couple was clear to see, but there were some drastic differences between the two interviews.
Here, we take a look at how each couple handled their special day.
THE SETTING
Both engagement interviews took place in an informal living room setting – but it’s unclear whether the chats took place in their personal homes.
William and Kate’s room was full of traditional, rich colours and patterns, while Meghan and Harry sat on a modern, beige sofa surrounded by monochrome pillows.
THE ATMOSPHERE
Meghan and Harry appeared much more at ease in front of the cameras than William and Kate did.
This may be because there’s less pressure on Harry because he isn’t first in line to the throne, and Meghan is likely to have had media training through her work as an actress.
Understandably, Kate seemed a little tense throughout her interview and let William do most of the talking.
THE BODY LANGUAGE
William and Kate sat apart and rarely touched one another during their appearance.
This shows a strict adherence to the precedent the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have set of showing virtually no displays of affection in public.
The pair angled their bodies towards the camera instead of each other, and occasionally patted one another on the knee.
In contrast, Meghan and Harry held hands throughout the chat and their bodies were angled towards each other.
They also finished each other’s sentences and giggled a lot.
THE PROPOSAL STORY
Each interview begins with the couple telling the story of their proposal - and they’re very different.
William popped the question after jetting Kate out to Kenya, while Harry was more low key.
He got down on one knee while enjoying a “cosy night” in at his and Meghan’s cottage.
THE OUTFITS
Kate looked elegant in a £385 blue silk Issa dress, which sold out 24 hours after the photo call.
While still smart, Meghan looked less formal in a £437 dark green dress by Parosh.
William wore a classic dark suit with a pocket square, while Harry opted for a light blue suit and skinny tie.
THE RINGS
William famously gave Kate his late mother Princess Diana’s £250,000 blue sapphire engagement ring when he proposed.
“I thought it was quite nice because obviously she's not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement of it all,” he said. “This was my way of keeping her sort of close to it all.”
Harry shunned an heirloom, choosing to design a custom ring for Meghan that paid tribute to his mum by including two diamonds from her personal collection.
“The little diamonds on either side are from my mother’s jewellery collection to make sure that she’s with us on this crazy journey together,” he said.
The centre stone in the ring is from Botswana, where the couple spent time together during the early days of their relationship.
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THE QUEEN
Kate’s account of meeting The Queen was short and to the point. She said: “I first met her at Peter and Autumn's [Phillips] wedding, and again, it was amongst a lot of other guests and she was very friendly.”
But Meghan gushed about meeting her future grandmother-in-law, and Harry mentioned the corgis took to her immediately.
“It’s incredible, I think, you know, a) to be able to meet her through his lens, not just with his honour and respect for her as the monarch, but the love that he has for her as his grandmother," she said.
Meanwhile, this is how Twitter reacted to Meghan and Harry's engagement news.