Prince William acknowledges Meghan Markle's positive influence on Prince Harry

Rumours have long circulated about the relationship between Prince William and Meghan Markle, suggesting a lack of warmth between them. However, their initial meeting was reportedly more positive.

Meghan began dating Prince Harry in 2016, and shortly thereafter, Harry introduced his future wife to his family, including his brother William and Princess Kate. 

Details of this first encounter were disclosed in Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand's book "Finding Freedom." Allegedly, when Harry introduced Meghan to William, the future King remarked, : "I was looking forward to meeting the girl who has put that silly grin on my brother's face." 

Meghan reportedly found the interaction more awkward with Kate during that occasion.

Speaking on the Sussexes' Netflix docuseries, Meghan claimed: "When Will and Kate came over and I met her for the first time they came over for dinner. I remember I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot. I've always been a hugger, I didn't realise that that is really jarring for a lot of Brits. 

"I guess I started to understand very quickly that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside. There is a forward-facing way of being, and then you close the door and go 'You can relax now' but that formality carries over on both sides. And that was surprising to me."

Elsewhere in the show, Harry spoke about Meghan's first chance meeting with his grandmother, the late Queen. "My grandmother was the first senior member of the family that Meghan met," he revealed. "She had no idea what it all consisted of. So it was a bit of a shock to the system for her.

"I mean, it's surreal. There wasn't, like, some big moment of, 'Now you're gonna meet my grandmother.' I didn't know I was gonna meet her until moments before," Meghan added. "We were in the car and we were going to Royal Lodge for lunch, and he was like, 'Oh, my grandmother is here! She's gonna be there after church.' We were in the car, driving and he's like, 'You know how to curtsy, right?' And I just thought it was a joke."

On their cultural differences, Harry continued, "How do you explain that to people? How do you explain that you bow to your grandmother? And that you would need to curtsy, especially to an American. Like, that's weird." Nevertheless, Meghan ultimately met and curtsied to the queen. "It was so intense," she added. 

"When she left, [Princess] Eugenie and Jack [Brooksbank] and Fergie [the Duchess of York] said, 'You did great!' Thanks? I didn't know what I was doing." Harry later added: "I remember my family first meeting her and being incredibly impressed. Some of them didn't quite know what to do with themselves…They were surprised. Maybe surprised that a ginger could land such a beautiful woman, and such an intelligent woman."