Meghan Markle opened up about the aftermath of her explosive Oprah interview, claiming she was very aware how the public viewed her royal responsibilities even after moving to the US with Prince Harry.

The former Suits star and her husband Prince Harry quit royal duties in January 2020, less than two years after their May 2018 wedding. They went on to set up home in Montecito, California, before deciding to open up about their experiences with the Firm – including during their explosive tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey.

The televised conversation made headlines around the world – not least because of the couple’s claims of racism within the royal family, that Princess Kate had made Meghan cry before her wedding, and that Harry had been cut off financially.

But even at that moment, Meghan said, she was aware of her royal connection. In her 2022 interview with The Cut, the Duchess stated: “It’s important to be thoughtful about it because – even with the Oprah interview, I was conscious of the fact that there are little girls that I meet and they’re just like, ‘Oh my God, it’s a real-life princess.’

“I just look at all of them and think, ‘You have the power within you to create a life greater than any fairy tale you’ve ever read’. I don’t mean that in terms of ‘You could marry a prince one day.’ I mean you can find love. You can find happiness. You can be up against what could feel like the greatest obstacle and then you can find happiness again.”

Harry and Meghan’s relationship with the royal family is now all but estranged. And that gulf widened even further this week when their profiles were “downgraded” on the official Buckingham Palace website.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were initially removed entirely from the site before their individual bios were replaced by a 577-word joint section. The change comes four years after the couple stepped down as senior working royals.

The first sentence of their new joint profile explains they “have stepped back as working members of The Royal Family” and gives brief summaries of their most notable achievements.

Harry’s original profile described him as fifth in line to the throne, something that has now been removed from the website. And he originally had a 2,700-word biography which included details of his early life, education and army career.

Now, that has been condensed into a paragraph which reads: “The Duke is the younger son of The King and Diana, Princess of Wales. He was born at 4.20pm on 15 September 1984 at St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington and christened Henry Charles Albert David at St George’s Chapel, Windsor. He spent ten years working in the Armed Forces, ending operational duties in 2015. During his service, he conducted two tours of duty to Afghanistan with the British Army.”

Meghan’s section of their joint profile is just two paragraphs long. It says: “Prior to her marriage to The Duke of Sussex in 2018, The Duchess worked as an actress, appearing in film and television. She most notably played the role of Rachel Zane on the series Suits for seven seasons, completing over 100 episodes. Alongside her successful career as an actress, The Duchess also wrote and edited a lifestyle website called The Tig.

“During her time as a working member of the Royal Family, The Duchess became Patron of The National Theatre, The Association of Commonwealth Universities, Smart Works – which helps long term unemployed and vulnerable women return to employment – and animal welfare charity, Mayhew.”