A timeline of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s relationship: From their first date to their shocking new Netflix documentary

It began with a blind date and one query: “Is he good?” Now — six years, two children and a royal exit later — one of many world’s most well-known {couples}, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, are revealing new particulars of their relationship and what led them to step back from the royal family. 

The six-part Netflix documentary “Harry & Meghan” is already controversial, with trailers revealing provocative soundbites and emotional moments from their lives, and promising rather more. The primary three episodes of the docuseries drop Thursday, with the rest of the episodes launched on December 15. 

Here is what to know in regards to the couple on the heart of the media storm.

July 2016: Assembly on a blind date 

The beginning of Harry and Meghan’s romance was removed from the royal norm. The British royal and the American actress first met when a mutual good friend set them up on a blind date in 2016, with neither of them having any concept who the opposite was. In actual fact, the one query Meghan had for his or her mutual good friend previous to that first date was, “Is he good?” 

“As a result of if he wasn’t variety, it simply, it did not look like it could make sense,” she informed the BBC in 2017. “And so we went and met for a drink after which I feel in a short time into that we mentioned, ‘Effectively, what are we doing tomorrow?'”

They shortly had two extra “back-to-back” dates in London, Prince Harry informed BBC Information, and inside a number of weeks, Meghan traveled to Botswana with the prince, the place they “camped out with one another underneath the celebs.”

“It was improbable, it was completely wonderful to get to know her as shortly as I did,” Harry mentioned. 

October 2016: First stories of their relationship 

The first report of the couple’s relationship appeared within the British tabloid The Sunday Categorical on October 31, 2016. Citing nameless sources, the outlet report that Harry, then 32, was “besotted” with Meghan, who was 35 on the time.  

November 2016: Prince Harry blasts tabloids for racist and sexist “abuse and harassment”

After that first story on their relationship, shops went wild with the information, a few of it rife with racist and sexist commentary. One tabloid, The Solar, revealed a cover story referring to Meghan as “Harry woman’s on Pornhub,” making it appear as if the actress had posted intercourse tapes, when in actuality another person had uploaded steamy scenes from her USA community present “Fits” to the Pornhub web site. 

This, amongst different headlines, prompted the royal household to difficulty an uncommon public statement about relationship, blasting the media for the tone of its protection. 

“The previous week has seen a line crossed. [Harry’s] girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been topic to a wave of abuse and harassment. A few of this has been very public – the smear on the entrance web page of a nationwide newspaper; the racial undertones of remark items; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and internet article feedback,” the Palace mentioned in an announcement. 

“A few of it has been hidden from the general public — the nightly authorized battles to maintain defamatory tales out of papers; her mom having to wrestle previous photographers to be able to get to her entrance door; the makes an attempt of reporters and photographers to realize unlawful entry to her dwelling and the calls to police that adopted; the substantial bribes supplied by papers to her ex-boyfriend; the bombardment of practically each good friend, co-worker, and cherished one in her life.”

The assertion mentioned Harry was frightened about Meghan’s security and was “deeply disillusioned” he hadn’t been in a position to shield her from the maelstrom. 

“It’s not proper that a number of months right into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle ought to be subjected to such a storm,” the assertion mentioned. “He is aware of commentators will say that is ‘the worth she has to pay’ and that ‘that is all a part of the sport’. He strongly disagrees — it’s her life and his.”

September 2017: Meghan’s first huge interview and public look with Harry 

Meghan Markle’s first main interview about her royal romance with the prince was revealed in September 2017 in Vanity Fair, throughout which she mentioned the “waves” of challenges that had emerged within the couple’s first 12 months. 

“We’re two people who find themselves actually completely happy and in love. We had been very quietly relationship for about six months earlier than it turned information, and I used to be working throughout that complete time, and the one factor that modified was folks’s notion,” she informed the journal. “Nothing about me modified. I am nonetheless the identical individual that I’m, and I’ve by no means outlined myself by my relationship.”

That interview led British betting-exchange Betfair to advertise odds on when the couple would get engaged. Quickly after the interview’s publication, Meghan and Harry made their first official public appearance collectively as a pair, holding arms on the Invictus Video games, an occasion based by Harry to assist wounded veterans. 

November 2017: A royal engagement

Two months after their first joint look and a bit over one 12 months after they first began relationship, Harry’s dad, Prince Charles — now King Charles, following the loss of life of Queen Elizabeth II — formally introduced Harry and Meghan’s engagement. 

Many key members of the royal household, together with Charles and Harry’s brother Prince William, introduced their pleasure in regards to the information. 

Could 2018: A historic wedding ceremony at St. George’s Chapel

Harry and Meghan’s wedding was lavish, historic and considerably controversial. Meghan turned the primary American in a long time to marry into the royal household. The final to take action was Wallis Simpson, who married the previous Edward VIII after he abdicated the throne in 1936. 

Meghan additionally turned the primary recognized mixed-race lady to marry into the royal household. 

The marriage ceremony included the primary African American presiding bishop to assist officiate a royal wedding ceremony, Michael Curry. 

Upon their marriage, they got the titles Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

October 2018: Couple anticipating their first baby 

The royal household introduced on October 15, 2018 that Harry and Meghan had been expecting their first child collectively.

Palace officers mentioned the couple “appreciated the entire help they’ve acquired from folks world wide since their wedding ceremony in Could and are delighted to have the ability to share this completely happy information with the general public.” 

Could 2019: Child Archie is born 

On Could 6, 2019, Meghan delivered a baby boy they named Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. 

Archie turned the primary recognized baby of mixed-race heritage to be born into the royal household. The celebration was considerably overshadowed, as Meghan later revealed that there have been “a number of conversations” by royal insiders speculating on “how dark” the baby’s skin color would be. 

October 2019: Documentary reveals chaos behind the general public highlight

ITV Information unveiled a documentary that includes interviews with the royal couple, who mentioned their current journey to Africa, what it was like for Harry to retrace the steps his mom took simply months earlier than her tragic loss of life, and the couple’s ongoing battle with the press. For the prince, the fixed turmoil with the media felt triggering, because it was a paparazzi-filled automotive chase that led to his mom’s loss of life in 1997, when he was 12. 

“I feel being a part of this household — on this function, on this job — each single time I see a digital camera, each single time I hear a click on, each single time I see a flash, it takes me straight again,” Harry mentioned within the interview. “In that respect, it is the worst reminder of her life versus the most effective.” 

Meghan was additionally requested of her struggles with the press. 

“Not many individuals have requested if I am OK,” she informed ITV’s Tom Bradby, tearfully agreeing that she had been struggling. “It is a very actual factor to be going via behind the scenes.”  

January 2020: Plans to step away from “senior” roles 

A number of months after these interviews, Harry and Meghan made the beautiful announcement that they might be stepping away from “senior” royal roles. They mentioned they might work to grow to be financially impartial and cut up their time between the U.Okay. and North America. They made the choice, they mentioned, partly to “elevate our son with an appreciation for the royal custom into which he was born, whereas additionally offering our household with the area to concentrate on the following chapter.” 

On their new web site, Sussex Royal, couple mentioned they might not be utilizing the British pool system of royal correspondents, which, regardless of being “regarded internationally as credible sources,” truly assist in the “amplifying of frequent misreporting.” 

February 2021: Official cut up from the royal household

After months of hypothesis, Buckingham Palace announced that Harry and Meghan wouldn’t be returning as working members of the royal household. 

“Following conversations with The Duke, The Queen has written confirming that in stepping away from the work of the Royal Household it’s not doable to proceed with the duties and duties that include a lifetime of public service,” a Buckingham Palace spokesman mentioned. “…Whereas all are saddened by their choice, The Duke and Duchess stay a lot cherished family members.”

A spokesperson for the couple additionally launched an announcement on the time, saying that they might “stay dedicated to their obligation and repair to the U.Okay. and world wide,” no matter their “official function.” 

“We will all stay a lifetime of service,” the assertion mentioned. “Service is common.” 

The couple ultimately settled into a brand new dwelling in California and introduced a sequence of recent initiatives, together with deals with Spotify and Netflix.

March 2021: Explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey 

In a stunning interview, Harry and Meghan sat down with Oprah Winfrey in a prime-time particular on CBS and spoke out in regards to the quite a few struggles that befell behind closed doorways on the palace. Amongst different issues, they recounted conversations about “how darkish” their son Archie’s pores and skin coloration could be, and described the shortage of help that resulted in Meghan feeling that she “simply did not wish to be alive anymore.” 

Additionally they shared that regardless of many tabloid options, Harry had a “actually good relationship” together with his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. Nevertheless, he mentioned he was “disillusioned” by actions of his father, and mentioned he and his older brother, Prince William, had been on “totally different paths.” 

Whereas they unveiled a slew of accusations and revelations within the interview, additionally they disclosed a cheerful improvement: they were expecting a child woman. 

“It is a woman,” Prince Harry informed Winfrey throughout the interview. The couple had announced the being pregnant on Valentine’s Day — 37 years to the day after Harry’s mom, the late Princess Diana, introduced her being pregnant. 

June 2021: Child Lilibet is born

The couple’s second baby was born on June 4, 2021. They named her Lilibet Diana — Lilibet being the household nickname for Queen Elizabeth, and Diana in honor of Harry’s late mom.

December 2022: The “full fact” in controversial Netflix docuseries

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they’re going to be revealing rather more about what’s gone on behind the scenes of their relationship and throughout the royal household, with the premiere of the Netflix docuseries “Harry & Meghan.” In a trailer for the sequence, Prince Harry teased that solely they know the “full truth” about what has occurred over the previous six years. 

“Nobody is aware of the complete fact. We all know the complete fact,” Prince Harry says, later intimating that he’ll expose some sordid tales of royal life.

“There is a hierarchy of the household. You realize, there’s leaking, however there’s additionally planting of tales,” he says.  “…It is a soiled recreation.”