From royal surnames to the truth behind those jam jar ‘rankings’: The 10 things we learnt from With Love, Meghan

Meghan Markle‘s new lifestyle Netflix series finally launched today after the duchess delayed its release due to the devastating fires that ravaged Los Angeles.

During each of the eight 33-minute episodes, which dropped at 8am GMT on Tuesday, the duchess was joined by guests as she offered lifestyle tips from inside a rented $8million (£5million) mansion near the Sussexes’ Montecito home.

Although Meghan did not directly mention the Royal Family or her reasons for stepping down from royal duties, she was more than happy to tell all about her life in California with husband Prince Harry and their two children, Archie and Lilibet.

‘With Love, Meghan’ gives viewers an intimate look into everyday life for the Sussexes, including how the children have named two of the chickens ‘Phil’ and ‘Jill’.

The duchess, who lives in an $14million (£11million) home with Prince Harry and their children, insists that even people in ‘little flats’ in London can enjoy a ‘small piece’ of her luxury Californian lifestyle. 

But ‘With Love, Meghan’ quickly came under attack from reviewers who described it as ‘gormless lifestyle filler’ with a ‘tangible desperation’.

The series, promoted as a chance to see Meghan ‘share personal tips and tricks, embracing playfulness over perfection’, is being seen as a a make-or-break moment for the couple’s $100million streaming deal. 

MailOnline looks at ten things we learnt after the duchess’ new series was launched today – five years after she and Prince harry acrimoniously stepped down as senior members of the Royal Family and embarked on a new life in California.

‘My surname is Sussex, not Markle’

In episode two of ‘With Love, Meghan’, the duchess promptly intervenes when her friend and The Office star Mindy Kaling refers to her as ‘Meghan Markle’.

As Meghan carefully demonstrated how to assemble a cucumber sandwich, the pair spoke about their favourite fast food growing up. 

The duchess called herself a ‘latchkey kid’ who ‘grew up with a lot of fast food and TV tray dinners’, listing off US chains Pollo Loco, Taco Bell and Jack In The Box.

But Kaling prompted a defiant response from the royal when she said: ‘I don’t think anyone in the world knows that Meghan Markle has eaten Jack In The Box and loves it.’

Gently telling Kaling off for calling her by her maiden name, the duchess replied: ‘It’s so funny you keep saying Meghan Markle, you know I’m Sussex now.’

As Kaling looked confused, Meghan, who has only visited Sussex once, continued: ‘You have kids and you go ‘No, I share my name with my children’.

‘I didn’t know how meaningful it would be to me but it just means so much to go “This is our family name. Our little family name”.

After being corrected, Kaling awkwardly responded: ‘Well, now I know and I love it.’

Meghan’s subtle dig at the Royal Family

The duchess appeared to make a subtle dig at the Royal Family at the end of her new Netflix show.

Although she did not directly reference her former royal duties, Meghan said her ‘new chapter’ was ‘part of that creativity that I’ve missed so much’.

She also spoke about ‘healing’ something ‘broken’ after she previously accused royal aides of preventing her from expressing her true self during her time in Britain. 

Closing the last episode with a speech to guests, including Prince Harry and her mother Doria Rangland, Meghan said: ‘I just want to raise a glass to you guys. This feels like a new chapter that I’m so excited that I’m able to share and I’ve been able to learn from all of you. So I just thank you for all the love and support.

‘And here we go, there’s a business! All of that is part of that creativity that I’ve missed so much, so thank you for loving me so much and celebrating with me.’

Meghan is also seen speaking to Harry about the party she organised for the show: ‘It’s good, right?’ He says: ‘Well done. You did a great job.’ Meghan adds: ‘Thank you.’ And Harry then says: ‘I love it.’

Meghan’s first jobs in doughnut and yoghurt shops

Early on in episode three, Meghan is seen making doughnuts ahead of chef Roy Choi arriving.

Speaking to the cameras, she says: ‘I once had a job at a doughnut shop called Little Orbit Donuts. They made tiny, tiny, little… not doughnut holes, tiny mini doughnuts, they would sell at craft venues. I helped.’

Responding to the film crew saying ‘maybe add this to your surprise breakfast stuff with your kids’, Meghan replied: ‘My kids would love this for breakfast. What child wouldn’t love a doughnut for breakfast?’

In episode five, Meghan hosts her long-time friends, former Suits co-star Abigail Spencer and Kelly McKee Zajfen, that her first job was at Humphrey Yogart, a frozen yoghurt shop in Los Angeles named after actor Humphrey Bogart.

Meghan also reminisces on her ‘many years’ as a Girl Scout, telling Delfina Blaquier, the wife of Argentine polo player Nacho Figueras who is a friend of Prince Harry: ‘I started as a Daisy, which is when you’re five or six, and I sold a lot of cookies, and my mum was my troop leader.

‘To get kids out in nature, that in and of itself is worth its weight in gold. And it just breeds curiosity, and you never forget that stuff you learned.’

Lifting the lid on life before Suits and the Royal Family, Meghan also reveals that she was a ‘coat-check girl’ in Chicago and tried serving cocktails but was not a good bar tender.

In the final episode, she also shares tips on wrapping gifts with double sided tape and reveals: ‘I used to teach a gift wrapping class when I was an auditioning actor.’

Prince Harry’s love for bacon, eggs and fried chicken

Throughout the series, Meghan makes a series of references to Harry’s love for certain foods.

When asked by Kaling about how best to season eggs, the duchess replies: ‘I have a family, a husband, who no matter what meal is put in front of him before he tastes it puts salt on, so I try to under salt.’

Kaling quips back: ‘I love knowing that your husband loves it salty.’

Speaking to two close friends in a later episode, she described ‘H’ as a ‘great cook’ who makes ‘the best scrambled eggs’.

She heaps praise on further by saying he generally makes a ‘really good breakfast’.

While making brunch, Meghan jokes: ‘I find when I’m cooking bacon, my kitchen very immediately becomes full of husband and three dogs. It’s not my perfume that’s bringing them all in. My bacon brings all the boys to the yard.’ 

While cooking fried chicken with Choi, Meghan also reveals: ‘My grandma, my mom’s mom used to fry chicken, but I love it and my husband loves fried chicken too.’

Meghan was the ‘fun’ one on Suits

Before meeting Prince Harry and joining the Royal Family, Meghan shot to fame on US hit series Suits.

Her days of playing paralegal Rachel Zane came to an end in 2018, when she married Harry.

In episode five of ‘With Love, Meghan’, the duchess is sat in the garden with her long-time friend Abigail Spencer, who played high-flying lawyer Dana Scott in Suits.

Spencer revealed that Meghan was ‘the head of morale on the show’, to which Meghan thanked her and replied: ‘I liked to plan fun for everyone.’

Meghan’s life in Argentina 

During episode four, the duchess reminisces with Argentinian photographer and businesswoman Blaquier, who met through their husbands.

‘The moment we met, we bonded over our love of the outdoors and being in nature. We always hike together whenever she’s in town. And sometimes we let our husbands join us,’ Meghan said.

Discussing how they first met, she added: ‘What’s so funny is, I remember when we first met, and you were like: ‘Wait a minute, you speak Argentinian Spanish?’ But it’s such a pretty language because it sounds so musical.’

Blaquier replied: ‘When you started speaking Spanish and I recognised the Argentinian, I was blown away, because I didn’t know that…’

‘That I’d lived there,’ Meghan said.

The duchess completed an internship at the US Embassy in Buenos Aires.

She added: ‘When I lived in Argentina, I think the reason I loved it so much is because it reminded me of California in a lot of ways. Where you have the mountains and you have this joy of life and the joy of being outside.

‘I was only there for a few months interning at the US Embassy, but I loved it.’

Meghan talks in a ‘bee voice’ to harvest honey’

Early in episode one, we see Meghan tending her bee hives during which she admits that she never enjoyed eating honey until she learnt more about the process. 

‘The biggest thing is keeping a low tone,’ she says. ‘Talk in our bee voice. Oh they’re busy. Busy Bees. I’ve got good vibes. Good hives, good vibes.

‘You know what it is. It’s like also that reminder to do something that scares you a little bit. 

‘I think that’s part of it, but I’m trying to stay in the calm of it, because it’s beautiful to be this connected.’

Meghan’s similarities with Archie 

During episode four, the duchess has a picnic featuring homemade focaccia bread with Blaquier during a hike.

Meghan opens up about how she passed time during her childhood and the similar traits her son Archie has.

She reveals that she makes ‘sun tea’ by leaving bags in cold water outside for two to three hours. 

Explaining the strange brewing method, she says: ‘Sun tea is something I’ve been making for a very long time. I made it as a kid and now I make it with my own kids. It’s really easy, it’s just tea. You can use nice silk bags, lots of loose leaf tea and you just let it steep with the warmth of the sun.’

She adds: ‘As a kid I was taking a bag of tea from the drawer in my house and putting it in a mason jar or probably an empty jar that once held spaghetti sauce. 

‘And putting it in the sun and sitting there like this, waiting for it to change colour, which funny enough is what Archie does now.’

Meghan also reveals that Archie caught two big trout while fishing on holiday last year, which allowed them to salt bake them together.

When asked if the children enjoyed it, she said: ‘They loved it. It was very sweet.’

It comes after Meghan revealed to People magazine before the series aired that Archie had told her, ‘Mama don’t work too hard’, during filming.

The truth behind Meghan’s jam ratings 

Both Prince Harry and Meghan’s mother Doria only made brief cameo appearances in the final episode.

But during an earlier episode, Meghan revealed that her mother was the first recipient of her jars of jam which were delivered to a select group last year as part of a soft launch for her new cookery venture.

While speaking with Kaling, the duchess says that the numbers she put on the jars caused some tension.

‘It was not a ranking, it was just ‘let me share them’ and then people started to take it very personally,’ she said.

Kaling replied: ‘When I received that in the mail, a box of your preserves it was probably one of the most glamorous moments of my life.

‘But then I looked at the label, and it said there were something like 50. And then I, of course, as a very hierarchical person, was like ‘who are these other 50? Does having a lower number make me more special…’

She added: ‘(I went) straight up on Instagram. I’m looking to see who the other people are, and I’m zooming in to see what numbers they have.’

Meghan said: ‘I did save one of fifty for my mom, of course. It felt like the right thing to do.’

Kaling replied: ‘It was really good and so many people asked to taste it. You know what I told them? ‘Get your own jar!’

Meghan’s love for luxury

Throughout the series, Meghan shares some of her unusual cooking methods with working parents, which has been blasted as out of touch by reviewers.

Among the royal’s most bizarre tips for ordinary people is adding sparkling water to scrambled eggs to make them more ‘fluffy’ and lathering towels in lavender oil to ‘treat yourself after a long day at work’.

She also recommends dehydrating citrus fruits which can make ‘really great gifts’ and reveals why you should never use tap water when making floral ice cubes.

Right from the start, in episode one, she preps a guest cottage for her make-up artist Daniel Martin with gifts including peanut butter pretzels which she transfers from its original plastic bag into another – seemingly to make it more aesthetic.

Among the gift package is also truffle popcorn she has made from actual corn on the cob and a homemade pink Himalayan sea salt bath soak. 

Later on in the series, Meghan explains her method for making floral ice cubes, saying: ‘It’s really really easy. It’s one of those surprise and delight moment for people.’

And in the sixth episode, she provides a ‘tip’ on heating dried herbs in a pan of oil to bring out their flavour ‘for people who don’t have fresh herbs’.

The duchess also dehydrates citrus fruits and suggests they would make ‘really great gifts’ for friends.

Speaking about dunking towels in lavender oil to ‘treat yourself’ after a long day at work, she says: ‘We’re gonna get some very basic towels. Don’t use the beautiful ones that you have in your bathroom.

‘These are the ones you should think of as gym towels.

‘You’re going to we them and you can either put a drop of the lavender oil in each one or dunk them or just give yourself a lavender bath and they get dunked in the same thing… After a long day at work, maybe you want a lavender towel. Treat yourself.’