Meghan Markle set to receive unconventional birthday gift

Meghan Markle celebrates her 43rd birthday this Sunday, August 4, but in seven years, she could receive an unconventional gift. 

In a 2021 sketch on the Today show, the Duchess of Sussex and comedian Melissa McCarthy brainstormed ideas for Meghan's 40th birthday celebration. 

Suggestions like a yacht party and a Suits reunion were playfully dismissed. Meghan rose to fame portraying paralegal Rachel on the drama series centered around a fictional New York legal firm. In a recently discovered clip, Meghan seeks Melissa's advice on how to celebrate her birthday.

In an unearthed clip, Meghan asked Melissa how she should celebrate her birthday. The comic replies: "My first guess, is it another photoshoot under a tree where you're looking very peaceful?"

Meghan replies: "Peaceful under a tree is me everyday."

Melissa, holding up a mocked-up tattoo of the pair reading "besties forever", then asked if the pair were finally getting matching ink. Meghan quipped: "You know I already have something similar across my back."

Pointing at the design, Melissa added: "This one's you and this one's me because sometimes I think we're twinsies." Meghan said: "You know, maybe we save it for when I turn 50."

In the clip, Meghan explained she actually wanted to encourage her friends to donate 40 minutes of their time to help women who may have lost their jobs after the pandemic. Meghan has long been a champion of gender equality and feminism.

Ahead of her marriage to Prince Harry in 2018, she spoke alongside Prince William, and Princess Kate to encourage people to listen to women. 

She said: "I hear a lot of people speaking about girls' empowerment and women's empowerment — you will hear people saying they are helping women find their voices.

"I fundamentally disagree with that because women don't need to find their voices, they need to be empowered to use it and people need to be urged to listen."

While it is unclear how Harry and Meghan will be celebrating her 43rd birthday, last year the pair were spotted at a celebrity hotspot in Montecito, California.

 Accompanied by a friend, they went to the Italian restaurant Tre Lune, which has previously been visited by the likes of Kourtney Kardashian.