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Prince Harry has opened up about the early days of his relationship with Meghan in his Spare memoir bombshell.
He recounted the moment he first saw his bride-to-be, and later when they met at 76 Dean Street, one of Soho House’s private members’ clubs in London, and spoke of their passionate reunion after weeks apart. in the summer of 2016.
He said he and Meghan spent the night together at one of the Soho House branches on the anniversary of Princess Diana’s death, recalling waiting “breathlessly” outside his wife’s bedroom until she opened the door and “he pushed me in.”
The red-hot details are just some of the moments the Duke of Sussex, 38, shared in his memoir, which hit shelves Tuesday. Here, FEMAIL details how the early days of the couple’s romance played out, according to the book…
HARRY LAYS EYES ON MEGHAN FOR THE FIRST TIME
In a section of the book titled ‘The Captain of My Soul,’ Prince Harry writes about the first moment he sees Meghan: on a friend’s Instagram page, wearing a dog filter (pictured in a different clip using a similar filter)
The duke said he came across a video of Meghan with their mutual friend Violet Von Westenholz on Instagram and was immediately drawn to her ‘angelic face’, despite the couple using a funny dog filter.
“I’ve never seen anyone so beautiful,” he said, saying it felt like a “punch to the throat” because of Meghan’s “wild joy.”
The duke said the brief clip stopped him in his tracks and he kept coming back to it, before sending a message to their mutual friend, who said she could “hook up” the couple.
Meghan then messaged Harry on Instagram, according to the memoir, before the duo exchanged numbers and eventually agreed to go on a first date.
FIRST DATE IN SOHO HOUSE
Harry then recounted the moment he first saw his future wife in person when they met at 76 Dean Street in London, one of the private clubs for Soho House members.
Describing her outfit, Prince Harry wrote: “She was wearing a black sweater, jeans, heels. I didn’t know anything about clothes, but I knew she was stylish.
He explained how he was stuck in traffic before their first meeting and had to explain over text that he was running late.
Harry said he was finally half an hour late, “red-cheeked, puffing, sweaty” and apologized. The two enjoyed a beer together before Meghan headed off to separate dinner plans.
SECOND DATE AT SOHO HOUSE
It is believed that the Duke of Sussex and his now wife, Meghan, will be photographed on their second date.
After FaceTiming each other after their first date, Meghan and Harry agreed to meet the next day before the American actress had to return to Canada to film the hit legal drama Suits.
They met again at Soho House in July 2016, and when Meghan arrived for the date, Harry recalled giving her red, white and blue cupcakes in honor of Independence Day.
The date soon turned steamy between the two, with Harry remembering that the couple were in the middle of a kiss, ‘not their first’, when the waitress arrived once more to see if they wanted anything else.
Their meals, Harry said, went uneaten as the ‘conversation flowed’, and eventually the duo agreed to spend a week together in the summer in Botswana.
SUMMER HOLIDAYS TO BOTSWANA
Harry and Meghan on their third date in Botswana
Meghan arrived at the house where they were staying and Harry said he gave her a chicken salad sandwich, wrapped in cling film.
She recalled that there was an awkwardness after their first hug, because despite having talked and FaceTimed “countless times,” this was the first time they had seen each other in person since their first two dates.
The couple toured the local area before camping in a tent outside. At the end of the week, when the couple broke up, Harry said his future wife began to cry.
Harry continued with a boys’ holiday in Maun, Botswana. He recalled smashing his phone and wanting to send Meghan a gift in a second letter. He ventured out while in ‘lion country’ to find flowers to include in the note.
SOHO HOUSE STEAMING ENCOUNTER
In his memoirs, Spare, the 38-year-old Duke of Sussex, recounts the passionate way he and Meghan reunited in London after spending weeks apart in the summer of 2016.
The couple met in person in August, and Harry recounted how passionately he and Meghan reunited in London after spending weeks.
The royal revealed that he and Meghan spent the night at one of the Soho House branches on the anniversary of Princess Diana’s death, recalling waiting “breathlessly” outside her room until she opened the door and “pushed me inside”.
Hinting at the passionate embrace that followed their meeting, he wrote: “I mean we hung a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the door.” But I don’t think there was time.
Harry recounted how Meghan had told him to meet her at Soho House, where she was staying.
He revealed in the book how she texted him that she had arrived in the UK while he was laying flowers on his mother’s grave in Althorp with the Prince of Wales. Harry drove back to London with William and met up with Meghan later that day.
He said in the book that she had told him to take a secret path to the hotel and an elevator, where he met a friend of his named Vanessa who took him to the door of her hotel.
Meghan opened the door, her arms reaching for Harry, she remembered. “She pushed me inside and thanked her friend in one fluid motion, then she quickly closed the door before anyone saw her.”
It is not known which Soho House location the duke was referring to, but it may be the same one where they had their first date, 76 Dean Street in Westminster.
SECRET TRIP TO WAITROSE
In one section of the book, Harry wrote about planning a meal with Meghan after spending the night together at Soho House in London.
The two decided to meet at a local Waitrose, dressing up to do so.
The Duke writes: ‘Equally anonymous, I grabbed a basket, casually walked up and down the aisles.
‘In addition to the fruit and vegetables, I felt it pass me by. Actually, it was more of a ride than a ride. very spicy We slid our eyes toward each other, just for an instant, and then quickly away.
MEGHAN VISITS THE NOTTINGHAM HOUSE
Meghan and Harry at the beginning of their relationship. Harry admitted he was “embarrassed” to show Meghan her home, Nottingham Cottage, after their shopping trip to Waitrose, revealing that her future wife compared it to a “frat house”.
Harry admitted he was “embarrassed” to show Meghan his home, Nottingham Cottage, after her shopping trip to Waitrose, revealing that his future wife compared it to a “frat house”.
The duke admitted that his London home, where he lived for six years, was “not a palace.”
Although the royal said she hoped to show Meghan around her home soon after they started dating in 2016, she was concerned that the two-bedroom cottage would not meet expectations.
The father of two wrote: “I was excited to welcome Meg into my home, but also embarrassed. Nott Cott was not a palace. Nott Cott was next to the palace, that was the best that could be said.
Watching Meghan walk down the garden path towards her house, Prince Harry said he was “relieved” that she “showed no signs of disappointment”.
However, that changed when the Duchess entered the cottage, where the ceilings are “low dollhouses.” She added: “Then she said something about a frat house.”
Prince Harry said he had never before noticed how ‘tired’ the furniture in his home was, and the then-Suits actress seemed particularly unimpressed with her beanbag chair that matched her brown sofa.
MEGHAN MEETING WITH PRINCE WILLIAM
Prince Harry introduced Prince William to Meghan in late 2016. Pictured: The Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in December 2017.
Harry claimed that Prince William “backed away” from Meghan’s hug during their awkward first meeting.
In his memoirs, the duke described the moment he introduced his older brother to his girlfriend as a “classic clash of cultures.”
The meeting took place in late 2016 at the Prince and Princess of Wales’ Kensington Palace apartment, shortly before Prince Harry and Prince William went hunting.
The Duke explains how Meghan had already met Princess Eugenie, her then boyfriend Jack Brooksbank, the Duchess of York, Prince Andrew and the Queen.
Describing the short walk from Harry and Meghan’s home, Nottingham Cottage, to apartment 1A, the duke admitted he was more nervous about his girlfriend meeting William than anyone else.
When his brother answered the door, Harry says William was “a bit fancy” in smart trousers and a shirt.
He wrote: ‘I introduced him to Meg, who leaned in and gave him a hug, which completely freaked him out. He backed off.
Giving some context to the awkward encounter, Prince Harry said his brother wouldn’t normally hug someone he doesn’t know.
In contrast, Harry explained that this was just Meghan’s way of greeting strangers.
He continued: ‘Maybe Willy expected Meg to curtsy? It would have been protocol when meeting a member of the Royal Family for the first time, but she didn’t know and I didn’t tell her.
After “exchanging a few warm words” at the entrance, the Prince of Wales invited the couple into the apartment, prompting Kate and William’s black cocker spaniel, Lupo, to begin barking.
When the couple asked about Kate, William told them that she was out with their children George and Charlotte.
After the brief reunion, Meghan again spent her first night alone at Nottingham Cottage as the brothers embarked on their shooting trip.
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