Meghan Markle surprised royal fans last month with the announcement of her new lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, which will see the former Suits star branch out into selling homeware and jams

Meghan became a senior royal when she married Harry in 2018

Meghan Markle ‘wanted to follow in Princess Diana’s footsteps’ when she first joined the Royal Family, a body language expert has claimed.

The former Suits actress began dating Prince Harry in 2016, and less than one year later, the couple were engaged to be married. Harry and Meghan wed in a lavish star-studded royal ceremony in Windsor, and despite family drama surrounding the American actress in the run-up to her wedding, the day went off without a hitch, and Harry’s father Charles even walked his daughter-in-law down the aisle.

Meghan was moderately well-known when she started dating Harry, thanks to her role on the US legal drama Suits, but she was catapulted to superstardom practically overnight when news of her romance with the prince went public. Body language expert Darren Stanton believes Meghan felt a connection to Harry’s late mother Princess Diana – who also experienced being pushed into the limelight from relative obscurity when she married Prince Charles in 1981 – and wanted to follow in her footsteps.

Meghan wanted to emulate Princess Diana when she joined the Royal Family, an expert claimed ( 
Image:
Getty)

“When Meghan was first brought into the Royal Family, it elevated her status to a global scale. She holds great precedence with Princess Diana,” he told Betfair. “She represents a lot of strength in first joining the Royal family and then stepping away. She followed her heart and what she cared about over everything else. There are lots of parallels between them and I get a sense Meghan wanted to follow in her footsteps. They both share a passion and drive to help others.”

Meghan was also described as “headstrong” and “empowered” as she prepared to launch her lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard, despite initial criticism of her new business venture. The Duchess of Sussex announced her brand in a series of Instagram posts last month, driving royals fans wild with excitement, and it later emerged that American Riviera Orchard would be selling homewares, table linen, cookbooks and jams, jellies and nut butters, all devised by Meghan herself.

Meghan reportedly admired Diana for ‘following her heart’ and stepping away from the monarchy ( 
Image:
UK Press via Getty Images)

Darren believes the mother-of-two has finally found the “right path” for herself with her new lifestyle brand, and it’s clear Meghan is now “comfortable in her own skin” and feels “good about herself” as she launched her new venture. “It’s a natural transition for her to embark on. It’s been a turbulent few years, but now she’s returning with a purpose that gives her fulfilment – and has found her feet with finding the right path she wants to go down,” he explained.

It was reported that Meghan was “putting the brakes on” American Riviera Orchard being rolled out worldwide, with one royal expert claiming the duchess didn’t want to look like she was “cashing in” on her royal title. Kinsey Schofield believes Meghan launched her latest venture “too quickly” after it was announced King Charles and Kate Middleton had been diagnosed with cancer. “Meghan knows that if she appears even remotely opportunistic while the Royal Family has a cancer cloud hovering, she will be vilified, and it will result in another very public professional failure,” she told the Daily Express.