13 amazing facts about Meghan Markle

1. What is Meghan Markle's real name?

Meghan's full name is actually Rachel Meghan Markle.

2. What was Meghan Markle famous for before meeting Prince Harry?

Meghan Markle was a successful actress, and had appeared in various TV shows and movies before meeting Prince Harry. She has also worked as a humanitarian for various charities and causes.

3. Who are Meghan Markle's parents?

Meghan's mother is Doria Ragland, a yoga instructor and therapist living in Los Angeles. Her father is Thomas W Markle, a retired Emmy–award-winning lighting director and camera operator, who worked on shows such as 'General Hospital' and 'Married With Children'. Her parents divorced when she was six years old, but the split was amicable. "I never saw them fight," she told Vanity Fair in 2017.

4. How old is Meghan Markle?

Meghan was born on August 4, 1981. She celebrates her 37th birthday in 2018.

5. What is Meghan Markle's ethnicity?

Describing her ancestry, Meghan said: "My dad is Caucasian and my mom is African American. I'm half black and half white. I have come to embrace [this and] say who I am, to share where I'm from, to voice my pride in being a strong, confident, mixed-race woman." Her mother is descended from Africans enslaved in Georgia, while and her father comes from Dutch, English, and Irish settlers.

6. Does she have any siblings?

Yes, but they're no longer close and not invited to the wedding. She has two estranged older half-siblings from her father's first marriage: Samantha Grant and Thomas Markle Jr. Grant, has criticised her half-sister to the press and on Twitter, describing her as a shallow social climber. Markle Jr is a window fitter in Oregon, who was once arrested for the unlawful use of a weapon.

7. Who was her character in Suits?

For her acting, she is most well-known for her role as paralegal Rachel Zane on the USA legal drama, 'Suits'. She has been on the show since it started in 2011, and will be leaving at the end of the seventh season. She filmed her final scenes last year before moving to London.

8. What else has she been in?

Outside 'Suits', Meghan has starred in a number of TV shows, movies and commercials. These have included 'Horrible Bosses', 'CSI: NY', 'Remember Me' and 'Castle'. She also starred as a 'suitcase holder' in the US version of 'Deal or No Deal'.

9. What charity work has she done?

Meghan has been involved in humanitarian causes, particularly ones that support women's health and rights. She has also worked with different organizations in Africa and Asia, including World Vision and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. After her engagement to Harry, she announced her retirement from acting and her intention to focus on humanitarian work.

10. Was she married before?

Meghan was previously married to film producer and talent manager Trevor Engelson from 2011 to 2013. The pair dated for six years before getting married in Jamaica. They filed for divorce citing "irreconcilable differences" in August 2013.

11. How did she meet Prince Harry?

The couple met on a blind date, arranged by a mutual friend in London in July 2016. She had been doing press for 'Suits' in the UK. "I didn’t know much about him and so the only thing that I had asked her when she said she wanted to set us up was — I had one question. I said, ‘Well, is he nice?’ Because if he wasn’t kind, then it didn’t seem like it would make sense," she said. Harry later said: "I had never watched 'Suits'. I had never heard of Meghan before."

12. What is Meghan Markle's religion?

Meghan was raised Protestant and attended Catholic school as a child, but has now converted and been baptized and confirmed in the Church of England since her engagement to Harry.