Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have reportedly been given the Archbishop of Canterbury’s blessing to get married.
The 33-year-old royal has been dating the ‘Suits’ actress – who was previously married to TV producer Trevor Engelson – for over a year now, and engagement rumours have been circling for months.
And now, according to the Daily Express newspaper, Archbishop Justin Welby is said to have confirmed to the couple that he has no objections to a possible marriage between them, clearing the way for a royal wedding which would likely take place at Westminster Abbey.
Officials at the Abbey – who have previously confirmed they allow divorced people to wed there – said the couple would require a marriage licence from the Archbishop’s faculty office, but other possible venues would include St Paul’s Cathedral or St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
However, the Archbishop himself, as well as his office at Lambeth Palace and Kensington Palace – where Harry lives in a bachelor pad – have all declined to comment on the speculation.
Whilst the pair have been dating for around 16 months, the 36-year-old star first caught the eye of the Prince two years prior to their meeting, as he had been attracted to Rachel Zane, her character on the USA Network drama.
Royal expert Katie Nicholl said: "He had a crush on Rachel Zane two years before he met Meghan and the reason I know is because I was having drinks with one of his friends.
"She told me she’d been on a night out with Prince Harry. He was single at the time, so she said, ‘Harry, who’s your ideal girl?’ And he said ‘Meghan Markle from ‘Suits’.’"
The flame-haired royal orchestrated a meeting between the pair in July 2016 through mutual friend Markus Anderson, and whilst they met up with "seven or eight" people, it was the "perfect opportunity" for the two to talk.
Katie added: "He asked Markus if he could set up, not a date, but an opportunity for them to meet and that happened in one of the private rooms of Soho House.
"There were about seven or eight of them altogether and it was a perfect opportunity for Harry and Meghan to come together in a really informal environment and actually talk.
"She was funny, feisty, confident and she wasn’t swayed or knocked by the fact that he was Prince Harry. She thought he was terribly cute."
Prince Harry given Archbishop’s blessing for marriage?
