WHAT I GAVE UP For love
Meghan Markle looked like an old pro. On Dec. 1, just four days after she and Prince Harry announced their engagement to the world, she inspired what the British press has dubbed “Markle mania” as they embarked on their first royal workday together. The elegantly attired actress looked the part of a princess next to her handsome royal fiancé as she charmed the crowds on her way to a World AIDS Day celebration in Nottingham, England. It was clear the people love her, and within hours her first official outing was widely deemed a smashing success.
But it was also an unexpectedly bittersweet moment for Meghan. Although Meghan and Harry’s story sounds like a Disney fairy tale — her amazing new life in the palace will include butlers, galas and tiaras — the whole transition has been tougher on Meghan than most people realize. “She’s had to make some huge, life-changing decisions,” an insider tells In Touch. From putting her career on the backburner and leaving behind close friends to saying goodbye to her low-key life and even her beloved dog, Meghan, 36, is paying a high personal price for a life with Harry, 33. “She couldn’t wait to get to London,” adds the insider, “but now it’s all beginning to sink in: Her life will never be the same again.”
SAD FAREWELLS Meghan’s already walked away from her thriving acting career. “Giving up her role on Suits for Harry after seven years was a tough decision, but in order to make her relationship work, she didn’t have a choice,” explains the insider. And while Meghan diplomatically said, “I don’t see it as giving anything up. I just see it as a change” and a “new chapter,” it’s been tougher than she’s let on.
She had to say goodbye to more than just a job. “She’s devastated to have left her castmates and pals behind,” says the insider. “She’ll no longer be able to see them as frequently as she’d like to, and though she’s made friends in London, she met most of them through Harry and doesn’t really have any friends who she can totally be herself with yet.” She can’t exactly go out and make new ones, adds the insider, because she’s so famous that she “no longer has the freedom she’s used to.” She’s also lost one of her
four-legged best pals. Though she brought her rescue beagle, Guy, to live with her in London, she rehomed Labrador-shepherd mix Bogart with friends “because he’s too old to fly,” adds the insider. “She feels slightly lost without him.”
Ultimately, Meghan believes it’s worth the sacrifice. “She’s always been extremely dedicated to her charity work,” says the insider. And second only to spending her life with Harry, “she’s most looking forward to using her new role to help others.” ◼