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The text Harry sent Meghan hours after they met
New details of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's first date, including what he told friends afterwards, the sweet text he sent to her the same night and the second date they arranged just 24 hours later, have been revealed.
Finding Freedom, the controversial royal biography exploring what led to the Sussexes stepping down as senior royals by journalists Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, is published tomorrow (11th August). Red has been given an exclusive preview.
The book outlines exactly how Harry and Meghan first met – including the three hour conversation that led to the now Duke of Sussex 'wasting no time' texting his future wife immediately afterwards to 'let her know he was very interested'. They then met up for a second date just 24 hours later.
Exclusive private members club Soho House in London was the setting for their first blind date, organised by two friends, the designer Misha Nonoo and Soho House's membership director Markus Anderson. They chose the venue because it 'afforded Harry the privacy needed for a prince to unwind'.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Soho House would go on to become one of the Sussexes regular spots until they moved to LA. In fact, Meghan hosted her hen party at the club's Soho Farmhouse near to their Frogmore Hall home in the Cotswolds in March 2018.
The night they met 'a private dining area cordoned off behind floor-to-ceiling drapes' kept Harry away from 'gawking guests', so he could chat to Meghan.
The Suits actress' was less worried about meeting Britain's most eligible bachelor, and more concerned about what she would wear, according to the book.
'She settled on a navy-blue sundress and heels for the evening' while getting ready in the suite upstairs that Anderson had arranged for her.
Anderson also 'had a hand in some of the evening's logistics...that included other friends being present at the informal gathering so it wouldn't be awkward', the book claims. 'If that first meeting worked out, then they could plan a proper one-to-one get together.'
The friends needn't have worried because Harry and Meghan hit it off immediately, but there were some initial nerves on Meghan's side because 'they came from two very different worlds'.
Harry didn't seem phased until he spotted Meghan: 'Harry is admittedly tough to impress, but he almost froze when he walked into the room and saw Meghan. He knew she was beautiful – he had seen the photos on her Instagram account and online – but she was even more stunning in person. "Wow," he later confessed to a friend. "The most beautiful woman I've ever seen in my life."'
As the book explains: 'Meghan wasn't just beautiful. She was also different to the women Harry was used to meeting.'
She was successful in her own right and 'works a room very well', so much so that 'in social settings, all eyes are drawn to her'.
The biography claims that was a challenge for the prince: 'Harry quickly realised that impressing Meghan was going to be tougher than giving her one of his big smiles. "I am really going to have to up my game here," he said of their first meeting. "Sit down and make sure I've got a good chat!"'
And that's what happened. Over a beer for him and a martini for her, Harry and Meghan talked for hours, quickly at ease in each other's company, about his charity work and her rescue dogs.
But there was no goodbye kiss: 'At the end of the evening, which had lasted almost three hours, Harry and Meghan went their separate ways. Despite the palpable attraction between them, there was no goodbye kiss, no expectation, just a hint that something was there and they hoped to see each other again soon.'
Harry did, however, make it clear how he felt after their first night together with a text: '"He definitely didn't hide the fact he was keen," said a friend of Meghan's.' They ended up meeting up for dinner, just the two of them, just 24 hours later at Soho House's Dean Street Townhouse.
The book explains: '"Almost immediately they were obsessed with each other," a friend said. "It was as if Harry was in a trance."'
The book has made headlines in recent weeks, especially in regards to the claims made about Harry's strained relationship with his brother William and Meghan's 'awkward' friendship with Kate.
Meghan and Harry have distanced themselves from the biography, saying they 'did not contribute', with a statement from the Sussexes adding: 'This book is based on the authors' own experiences as members of the royal press corps and their own independent reporting'.
Even so, many see the book as an insider look at what led to Harry and Meghan stepping down as senior royals in March, from their perspective, because many people close to the couple are said to have spoken to Scobie and Durand.
Finding Freedom by Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand is published by Harper Collins on 11th August.
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