How Meghan Markle effortlessly saved her first Royal speech after awkward mix-up

04 November 2023 , 07:00

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Meghan Markle's very first public speech didn't go quite to plan (Image: Getty Images)

Meghan Markle saved her first Royal speech in a very clever and relatable way after a massive mix-up that almost threw the Duchess into chaos before she had even married into the British Royal Family.

The Invictus Games Foundation director David Wiseman recently revealed that he accidentally delivered the wrong script for Meghan's first public address as Prince Harry’s fiancée back in 2018. And this blunder in turn created an awkward moment for Meghan when she was on-stage in front of the public.

Taking to the stage at an event for The Endeavor Fund, Meghan struggled to start speaking due to the right Royal blip that saw her look a little flushed. And all was revealed on the latest episode of a podcast.

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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry became engaged in 2017 (Chris Jackson Collection)

Speaking on Hello! A Right Royal Podcast, David admitted: "I messed up at work! It was the first time she'd spoken in public as the [future] Duchess of Sussex. There weren’t many of us at The Royal Foundation, so everyone sort of mucked in for everything.

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"I was writing the scripts, and there was a last-minute request for a change from her team – yeah, no problem, put it in. But she got the old version, and the new version was sent to her co-host, my mate, [British Army veteran] Neil Heritage. And there were there on stage, and they had two different versions of the script," he said.

He continued recalling the blunder when he said: "I don't know if you remember, they were both sort of not arguing, but saying ‘No, this is the version,' and so there was a fluff of the lines in front of everybody on her first opening speech as the [future] Duchess of Sussex."

In a video of the moment, you can see Meghan and Neil quietly laughing when they couldn't find the right piece of paper. David then said that he "died a little bit inside" as he watched on from the front row.

But ever the professional, Meghan kept her cool and despite the prolonged silence, she laughed, giggled and smiled at the audience in a personable way that filled the room with warmth.

Back in 2018, when it happened, Rebecca English from the Daily Mail shared the video and penned: "Meghan Markle's first award ceremony didn’t entirely go to plan....."

Fans thought Meghan handed the blip with grace, with one writing: "Awesome! 'Never let em see you sweat'," and a second saying: "She saved the day with humour."

But when Meghan found out how cut up about the blunder David was, the kind and caring Duchess-to-be reached out to him via text. Penning a message to him, Meghan wrote: "David, it's M, honestly, really really, don't worry about it."

Mollie Quirk