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Wales Online
Lifestyle
Stephanie Colderick

Harry and Meghan: The ten things many of us never knew before watching Netflix series

The first three episodes of Harry and Meghan's explosive Netflix series dropped on Thursday, December 8. The show aims to show the couple's truth as they document their split from the Royal family.

Prince Harry and Meghan stepped down as working royals in January, 2020, and have had a strained relationship with fellow members of the Royal family. The couple currently live in America with their children, Archie and Lilibet.

The couple want to explain what pushed them to leave the Royal family, the racism Meghan claimed she faced and the intense media scrutiny they were under in their own words. Topics covered in the first three episodes include Harry explaining his "shame" at wearing a Nazi uniform costume when he was younger, unseen footage of Princess Diana, and Harry defending his mother's Panorama interview. Here are 11 things you might not have known before watching the Netflix series. You can get more celebrity news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.

READ MORE: Royal Family hit back at Harry and Meghan documentary

Harry regrets wearing the Nazi outfit

Harry described wearing the outfit as "one of the biggest mistakes of my life" (Netflix)

In the documentary Harry described wearing a Nazi outfit as "one of the biggest mistakes" of his life and said he was "ashamed" of himself. The Prince had to apologise in 2005 for wearing a swastika armband to a friend's fancy dress party.

He said: "It was one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I felt so ashamed afterwards. All I wanted to do was make it right. I sat down and spoke to the Chief Rabbi in London, which had a profound impact on me. I went to Berlin and met a Holocaust survivor. I could have just ignored it and got on making the same mistakes again and again in my life, but I have learnt from that."

Meghan wanted to be "rich and famous" from the age of 11

In the second episode of Harry and Meghan, Meghan revisits her school and reads out a message she wrote when she was 11 revealing she always wanted to be "rich and famous". Talking to her former principal, Ms Debby, who she greeted with a big hug, Meghan read out a note she wrote to Ms Debby when she was 11.

She said: "I can't thank you enough. Even though I was at this school for ten years I wish I could have stayed for ten more. PS, when I am rich and famous and I write my life story, I will talk about you and the school so you will be known worldwide."

Meghan was surprised by the formality of the Royal family

Meghan was surprised the Royal Family remained formal in private settings (Netflix)

Meghan has said she was shocked by how "formal" the Royal family continued to be in a private setting.

Talking about the first time she met Prince William and Kate, the now Prince and Princess of Wales, Meghan explained she was dressed relaxed and casually in ripped jeans and was barefoot. She said: "Even when Will and Kate came over and I had met her for the first time, they came for dinner, I remember I was in ripped jeans and I was barefoot." and she went on to describe how she was a hugger but some British people found hugging "really jarring", hinting that this happened while meeting Prince William and Kate.

Meghan said she began to realise how the Royal family acted privately. She said: "I guess I started to understand, very quickly, that the formality on the outside carried through on the inside...that formality carried over on both sides and that was surprising to me"

Harry blocks out memories of Princess Diana

Prince Harry has said he doesn't have early memories of his mother after internally "blocking" them out. He said: "My childhood I remember was filled with laughter, filled with happiness and filled with adventure," although he somberly adds: "I don't have many early memories of my mum. It was almost like, internally, I sort of blocked them out. But I always remember her laugh, her cheeky laugh. Her always saying to me: 'You can get in trouble, just don't get caught' and I'll always be that cheeky person inside.

Harry added: "The majority of my memories are of being swarmed by paparazzi...Rarely did we have a holiday without someone with a camera jumping out of a bush or something."

Meghan "no longer has a Dad"

The Duke of Sussex admitted he "shouldered" the breakdown of Meghan's relationship with her father. The relationship began to break down just weeks before she married Harry when there were reports he was selling pictures and information to the newspapers.

Harry said: "Of course, it is incredibly sad what happened. She had a father before this and now she doesn't have a father. And I shouldered that because if Meg wasn't with me, then her dad would still be her dad."

Unseen Diana footage

Rare footage shows Princess Diana confronting the press (Netflix)

Incredible rarely seen footage of Princess Diana confronting a paparazzi photographer has emerged in the new Netflix Harry & Meghan series. In the clip, Diana is seen pleading with a man to stop taking pictures as she has food with Harry and William.

The incident was recorded in 1995 on a skiing holiday that Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie were also on. In the clip in the documentary Diana is leaving the table she is sitting on with her boys before walking up to the camera and putting her hand over the lens. She is heard saying: "Please leave. As a parent, could I ask you to respect my children's space. I've got the children out here for a holiday and we'd really appreciate the space."

Harry had a list of requirements for a potential partner

Meghan Markle says Prince Harry "had a list" of the things he was looking for in a partner when they met. Meghan said: "He had a list of all the things he was looking for." Harry points at Meghan and says: "This is the list."

Harry defends Princess Diana's Panorama interview

Prince Harry appears not to agree with his brother Prince William about the Panorama interview (Netflix)

Although his brother Prince William has said the Panorama interview with their mother, the late Princess Diana, should never be mentioned again, clips of the interview appear in the documentary. Prince Harry appeared to defend the BBC interview, saying: "We all know now that she was deceived into giving this interview, but at the same time she spoke the truth about her experience."

The couple documented their split from the Royal family from the beginning

The documentary features clips of Harry and Meghan filming themselves on their phone after they went public with their decision to leave the Royal family. Harry said: "A friend of ours actually suggested that we document ourselves through this period of time. With all of the misinformation that was going on out there, especially about us and the departure, it seemed like a really sensible idea."

Meghan compared meeting the Queen to 'Medieval Times'

Meghan said before meeting the Queen she did not realise how formal and regimented the procedure around the Royal family was, including curtseying. She compared meeting the Queen to 'medieval times'.

She said: "I mean, Americans will understand this. We have Medieval Times dinner and tournament. It was like that. Like, I curtsied as though I was like... "Pleasure to meet you your Majesty." and demonstrated the low curtsey she did while meeting the Queen.

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