The Duchess of Sussex added, “Let’s be honest, that was not very myself”

Meghan Markle is reflecting on a royal rule that didn’t feel genuine to her in a new interview.

The Duchess of Sussex, 44, made the revelation on The Circuit with Emily Chang and opened up in an episode of the Bloomberg Originals series released on Aug. 26, the same day that the second season of With Love, Meghan dropped on Netflix.

“Is there an inherent tension in trying to be relatable while also being a duchess?” Chang asked during the wide-ranging conversation on Meghan’s life in California with Prince Harry and their children, Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 4, as well as her business ventures and life today.

“No, I don’t find — I’m just being myself. So I think, probably, it was different several years ago where I couldn’t be as vocal,” the Duchess of Sussex said, seemingly referring to the status quo in the royal fold before she and Harry stepped back from their royal roles in 2020 and moved to the U.S.

“I had to wear nude pantyhose all the time,” Meghan said, which made her giggle while Chang laughed.

She continued, “Let’s be honest, that was not very myself. I hadn’t seen pantyhose since the ’80s, when they came in the little egg? That felt a little bit inauthentic, but that’s a silly example.”

“But it is an example of when you’re able to dress the way you wanna dress and you’re able to say the things that are true and you’re able to show up in the space really organically and authentically, that’s being comfortable in your own skin. And that’s, of course, had different chapters in my life,” Meghan said. “But right now, no, I don’t feel, I don’t feel that I need to prove anything.”How the Duchess of Sussex Became Meghan Inc.

The Duchess of Sussex previously spoke about dressing to “blend in” with the royal family during her days as a working royal in the docuseries Harry & Meghan, which was released in 2022.

“Most of the time that I was in the U.K., I rarely wore color. There was thought in that,” Meghan said in the documentary. How the Duchess of Sussex Became Meghan Inc.

“To my understanding, you could never wear the same color as Her Majesty [Queen Elizabeth] if there’s a group event, but then you also shouldn’t be wearing the same color as one of the other more senior members of the family,” she said, seemingly referencing Kate Middleton and the future Queen Camilla.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and guests pose for a photograph as they attend The Prince of Wales' 70th Birthday Patronage Celebration held at Buckingham Palace on May 22, 2018 in London, England

Then-Prince Charles, the future Queen Camilla, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on May 22, 2018 in London.Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson/Getty

“So I was like, ‘Well, what’s a color that they’ll probably never wear?’ Camel, beige, white,” she said about what inspired her style. “So I wore a lot of muted tones, but it was also so I could just blend in. I’m not trying to stand out here. There was no version of me joining this family and me not doing everything I could to fit in. I don’t want to embarrass the family.”

Meghan’s interview with The Circuit was published on the same day that season 2 of her lifestyle series, With Love, Meghan, premiered on Netflix, where cameras followed her cook, craft and create with guests including Chrissy Teigen, Tan France, Jay Shetty and José Andrés.