As Meghan Markle walks the careful line of royal associate, yet to be royal by name, all eyes focus on every move she makes now, and what they might mean for the moves she makes in the future.
The whispers, as they grow in decibels as they do strength and consistency, are that we should realistically be bracing ourselves for a royal wedding.
A profile in Vanity Fair, a couple of public appearances at the Invictus Games: Markle’s name, face and story are everywhere – as if we all need a crash course in the Markle narrative before she aligns herself with the royals for good. After all, even the best sporting stars need to warm up before a big match.
But if she does jump royal side, how much has to change? And more notably, how much of herself will she have to give up to do so?
Markle has already bid farewell to The Tig, the lifestyle website she once ran. In April, the actress announced she was closing the blog, some six months after the couple announced publicly they were dating. Many assumed the step was taken for the monarchy, because after all, the royal family rarely shed an opinion on anything. Perhaps it’s not a good lock for a royal associate to be sharing opinions on, well, everything.
Although Markle has not commented publicly on the reason for the blog's closure - something about spending more time on set something something busy - the timing was no doubt curious.
Although, a lifestyle website is an easy farewell considering the wealth of other goodbyes Markle may have to make upon joining the family.
Her politics, for one.
In April, she made a subtle but firm political statement regarding Brexit.
Re-posting an image of a sign that read: 'If EU leave me now you take away the biggest part of me,' Markle wrote: 'If EU leave me now…#brexit #parliament #referendum #London'.
Oh, and then there are the comments she has made about Trump, dating back to May, 2016, where she said - publicly - she would move to Canada if reality star won the election.
She went on, calling it 'crazy' Trump's sexist comments hadn't yet affected his supporters' views on him.
"If that is really the reality we are talking about then that is a game changer in terms of how we move in the world here," she said, going on to call him "misogynistic" and "divisive".
Why it has taken Prince Harry and Meghan Markle so long to be seen together.
These things? These simple, common and popular trains of left-wing thought? They must go. A royal is neutral. A-political.
So how about her career?
This one's a little harder to predict, though we can do our very best.
Technically, royals are allowed their own careers. Think Harry as a soldier, or William as a pilot.
They can, in theory, work. But what must be considered is the notion Markle's job isn't your average job. It's public. It's also based in Toronto, which, if you're geographically-literate, you would know is not quite near London.
Also, when Grace Kelly became Princess of Monaco, she did have to abandon Hollywood. Though it was a long time ago, it's hard to see a world where Meghan Markle could be both princess and Hollywood actress.
If it feels like she's giving it up a lot, it's because she will. Such is the nature of the royal family. She will, however, be able to continue exploring her passion for human rights and charity. After all, for members of the royal family, that is their full-time gig.
For example, in 2016 Markle became a global ambassador for World Vision Canada, travelling to Rwanda for the Clean Water Campaign. She has also worked as an Advocate for the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. Oh, and she was a counsellor for international charity One Young World.
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Do you think Meghan Markle should continue working as an actress if she does become a princess?
Top Comments
There is absolutely no way that she would be able to continue working as an actress as a full-time member of the royal family. The next generation of royals are already stepping up and doing more official engagements as the Queen takes a step back and after Prince Philip pulled the pin all together. Military service is the one exception, because it shows duty to country. Military service is very common across many royal families for this reason.
You can also say goodbye to designer clothing and glamorous photo shoots. The royals are now incredibly careful about the public image they present to avoid accusations of being wasteful. When was the last time you saw the Duchess of Cambridge wearing anything remotely daring? Well before her engagement, I'd guess. Her outfits now are modest, affordable and recycled often.
While William and Harry are considerably more modern than their predecessors, the royal family is still an incredibly rigid organisation that has to follow protocols and appear apolitical at all times. While Meghan would indeed be able to support charities, there would be careful consideration given to which ones would be ok.
Personally, I wouldn't ever marry into royalty because the restrictions, the lack of personal freedom and privacy are too big a price to pay to live in a nice palace and occasionally get to wear jewels.