The Duchess of Sussex has a “big heart” and is a “good person”, her former bodyguard said.

Steve Davies, who worked with Meghan Markle when she first joined the royal family, has hit out at claims the Duchess “bullied” her staff.

“She gets a bad rap for being a not very good person to work with, that she was this evil person in the Royal Family,” he said.

However, to Mr Davies, Meghan came across as a fundamentally “good person” who loved “working with charities to working with dog walkers and cleaners.”

In an interview with Touch Magazine, Mr Davies revealed the with the Duchess of Sussex, you must “give respect to get respect.”

He added he “felt sorry for her” when she joined the Royal Family.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex

He said: “She was paranoid. We had people following us around everywhere we went.”

The former bodyguard described Meghan as “warm and considerate” who has a “big heart.”

This comes after Meghan addressed being one of the most bullied people in the world while meeting teens in California.

Meghan visited Girls Inc of Greater Santa Barbara on October 2 as they launched a new digital wellness programme.

The non-profit organisation has partnered with #HalfTheStory for the project.

Larissa May, the founder of #HalfTheStory, took part in the event alongside Meghan and Girls Inc CEO Stephanie J. Hull.

She said the duchess opened up about being bullied during an activity with a group of teens.

“We did an activity where we talked through a bunch of scenarios, and Meghan talked about being one of the most bullied people in the world,” Ms May told Vanity Fair.

Meghan’s former bodyguard rejected claims she “bullied” her staff

“We had girls wave these little emoji signs and talk about how each one of these scenarios would have impacted them emotionally.”

She added: “With Stephanie and Meghan, we talked about what it really means to grow up in this digital age.”

During her visit, Meghan also helped try out the Social Media U curriculum. It was designed with input from teens on #HalfTheStory’s advisory board.

The aim of the project is to encourage teenagers to socialise without screens while also helping them use technology in a positive way.

It is being financially backed by Harry and Meghan’s Archewell Foundation as well as the Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation and Melissa French Gates’ Pivotal Ventures.