When your colleague starts dating a member of the Royal family, Prince Harry no less, you might expect to turn up to work and have things be a bit… different. More paparazzi and NDA’s? Sure. But MI5 security and threats of being fired? Not so much…
According to Wendell Pierce, Meghan Markle’s on-screen father, everything seemed to change overnight on set of Suits once Meghan and Harry went public. In a rare case of real-life mimicking art, Wendell seemed to have just as distant a relationship with Meghan IRL as their two characters on the show (in those early seasons, Suits fans will know), since he didn’t actually know they were dating until Prince Harry was flying MI5 security guards over to protect Meghan.
‘I actually didn’t think it was real, then all of a sudden I turn around and there is a guy from MI5 on set every day,' Wendell told Extra. 'The one thing that was clear [was that] she was extremely happy. She had a glow. I knew she was in love. With the whirlwind of publicity and the world of being a royal now, the one thing that’s constant is the fact that I know she loves him.'
Click through to see a timeline of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's relationship...
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's relationship timeline
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle met in London in July 2016.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
They were introduced by mutual friend Markus Anderson, who is the director of Soho House.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In October 2016, the Express became the first newspaper to publish news that Prince Harry had a new girlfriend.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
On November 8th 2016, Kensington Palace released an unprecedented statement which referring to Markle as Harry's girlfriend for the first time.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In the statement, Prince Harry condemned the 'wave of abuse and harrassment' faced by Markle, saying that he was 'worried about Ms. Markle's safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her.'
Prince Harry and Meghan Marklec
'It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm,' the statement continued.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple were papped together for the first time in December 2016, shopping for a Christmas tree in London at the Pines and Needles store.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Later that week, they were seen on London's West End, catching a performance of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In February, Prince Harry wore a his 'n' hers bracelet on the cover of Town & Country magazine, just weeks after Markle was pictured wearing the same one on Instagram.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In March 2017, Meghan joined Prince Harry in the Caribbean for the wedding of his friend's Tom 'Skippy' Inskip and Lara Hughes-Young.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
It was the first time that Markle accompanied Harry to a wedding, marking another milestone occasion for the couple.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The first public event attended by the couple was the polo at Coworth Park in May 2017.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Later in May, Markle attended the party portion of Pippa Middleton's wedding to James Middelton.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry was seen driving her to the event after the church ceremony.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple were photographed together the following day at the wheelchair tennis.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple 'broke with royal protocol' by holding hands and appearing affectionate while at the Invictus Games.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Meghan referred to Harry as her boyfriend numerous times, saying: 'We're a couple. We're in love. I'm sure there will be a time when we will have to come forward and present ourselves and have stories to tell, but I hope what people understand is that this is our time.'
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In early November 2017, it was reported that Meghan Markle was leaving Suits after seven series.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Much was made of Markle's choice of outfit: ripped jeans and a white blouse called 'The Husband'.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Although Prince Harry was sat next to First Lady Melania Trump at the event, rather than his girlfriend, she was only seated a few rows behind him.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple made their first official public appearance in September, when Markle attended the opening of Prince Harry's Invictus Games.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In mid-November 2017, bookies suspending betting on an impending royal engagement, as speculation grew that an announcement was about to be made.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
On November 27th 2017, Prince Charles announced the engagement of his younger son Prince Harry and Meghan Markle after 15 months of dating.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple later appeared at a photocall, with Markle wearing a white dress coat by Canadian brand Line The Label. The website has subsequently crashed.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The engagement ring, by Cleave and Company, was reportedly designed by Prince Harry himself, using two stones that belonged to Princess Diana.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
When asked by waiting photographers if the proposal was romantic, Harry joked 'of course!'
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple indulged in some PDA at the closing ceremony.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Meghan wore a maroon midi dress with a pleated chiffon skirt by one of her favourite Canadian brands Aritzia.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
She teamed it with a matching burgundy biker jacket by Mackage.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry reportedly spent time with Meghan's mother Doria while at the Games too.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry was photographed kissing Meghan.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In late September 2017, it was reported that Meghan had met the Queen, prompting speculation that the relationship was getting serious.
And that wasn’t the only overnight security change on-set, Meghan’s name also stopped appearing on filming schedules because the constant information leaking from set meant her safety was at risk. Apparently, this led to a set-wide threat of sackings if everyone kept talking.
‘It inarguably boils down to security issues,' a source told Us Weekly back in 2017, 'Information was leaking out of Suits like crazy. As soon as it came out that they were dating, everyone was warned to stop talking or they would be fired.'
Yikes, sounds like the Suits set wasn’t the easiest place to work once the future Duke and Duchess of Sussex took their relationship to the next level. The cast got royal wedding invites out of it though, so we don’t imagine they’re holding a grudge