Markle’s door slam goes viral

LONDON — First she married Prince Harry. Now she’s rocking Givenchy and shutting car doors by herself. Is there anything Meghan Markle cannot do?

The answer, for many Brits, is “no.”

The Duchess of Sussex (photo) embarked on her first solo trip as a royal recently, attending the opening of “Oceania” at London’s Royal Academy of Arts. As Markle arrived at the venue, her car door was opened for her. Seconds later, she was slamming it shut. All. By. Herself. While news of a woman closing a door in 2018 does not usually ignite global debate, Markle’s small-yet-perhaps-ratherlarge gesture caused quite the stir on social media. Royals generally have someone on hand to open and close doors for them, so Markle’s autonomous move raised eyebrows — and sparked questions.

“Did Markle break protocol?” pondered some. “Is she the first royal to close her own door?” wondered others.

“A princess who still takes the time to shut her car door. Well done Meghan!” tweeted Emily Andrews, the royal correspondent for the Sun.

For one more-frustrated tweeter, widespread news coverage of Meghan’s door-closing capability became too much to handle: “The UK is careering off a Brexit cliff edge and that’s deemed newsworthy !!!!!! ”

So, did the duchess break protocol? The answer: No.

“In the royal goldfish bowl, everything is noticed,” royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told The Washington Post.

“The phrase ‘royal protocol’ means you mustn’t do selfies and autographs and so on. Yes, there are dos and don’ts, but in this case Meghan was just doing her own thing.”

Markle is not the first royal to shut her own door. Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, also has been spotted doing so.