The relationship between the new Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex has fascinated royal watchers for a while.
Prince Edward and Sophie have just been gifted the titles of Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh earlier today, reports the Mirror. However, they have appeared to be relatively close to Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle.
The late monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, requested that Edward and Sophie become mentors to Harry and Meghan when the pair got married back in 2018.
It was once thought that the new Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh could smooth tensions over with Harry and Meghan - as they are some of the only royals to speak publicly about the couple.
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In a rare interview with The Sunday Times, Sophie compared her experiences to Meghan's. In the interview, Sophie compared the couple's experience to hers and Edwards, saying: "Remember I’d had five years to adjust [to royal life]. And for our six-month engagement I was even staying at Buckingham Palace. Not that you necessarily know how it will pan out."
As reported by the Times, Sophie was the first member of the royal family to visit Meghan after she gave birth to Archie in 2019 - going to the couple's Frogmore Cottage in Windsor.
A source told the outlet that Sophie is 'normal' and has empathy that perhaps others in the Firm 'don't naturally have'.
And while the pair share the same interests, royal expert Russell Myers told True Royalty TV that the "similarities are there to be seen".
Russell continued: "The similarities between Sophie and Meghan are there to be seen.
"Sophie's working with girls' education, she's done a lot of stuff about violence against females in Africa...Are the Instagram generation going to be as obsessed with Sophie and Edward Wessex as they are with the Sussexes? Obviously not.
"However, when you're dealing with them... Sophie's really across her subject matter. He poignantly added: "It's not just for show. With the Sussexes not here, the Wessexes will undoubtedly benefit."
Edward and Sophie have now seen their role in the royal family increase after Harry and Meghan stepped down.
At the end of 2022, Edward and his older sister Anne were given the titles of Counsellors of State. This means they can take King Charles place to carry out constitutional duties.
The roles should traditionally belong to Prince Harry and Prince Andrew as they are closer in the line of succession, but they were removed due to not being working royals anymore.
Sophie was one of the only royals to make a comment about Harry and Meghan's exit from the firm. At the time, she said: "I just hope they will be happy. We all try to help any new members of the family."
The couple also joked about Harry and Meghan's controversial Oprah Winfrey interview back in 2021 during an interview with the Telegraph's royal editor Camilla Tominey.
As they were quizzed about the Oprah interview, Edward said: "Oprah who?" Sophie followed up with: "Yes, what interview?"
The Duchess of Edinburgh was later asked about an anecdote that the Archbishop of Canterbury did not know who Oprah was at the Sussex wedding.
She replied: "You know, if you’re not into chat shows, there’s no reason why you should know who she is. Certainly not in this country, anyway."
Prince Edward also commented on the "very said" situation when it came to Megxit, while speaking to CNN. He said: "Listen, weirdly we've all been there before – we've all had excessive intrusion and attention in our lives.
"And we've all dealt with it in slightly different ways, and listen, we wish them the very best of luck. It's a really hard decision."
In January this year, it was reported that Meghan actually turned down help from Sophie, who seemed like a natural mentor to the royal newcomer.
According to Gyles Brandreth's book, who is a friend of the royals, Meghan "made it clear" that she didn't need help from Sophie, and would rely on Harry instead.
In the book, Gyles wrote: "The Queen (who, of course, had seen it all before) understood that Harry's girl might find adjusting to Royal life 'challenging to begin with' (as she put it). 'It is very jolty, but you soon get used to it' – that was Her Majesty's experience going back many years.
"To help Meghan, the Queen suggested that her daughter-in-law, Sophie Wessex, would be an ideal mentor. 'Sophie can help show you the ropes,' said the Queen. Meghan made it clear that she did not feel she needed Sophie's help. She had Harry."
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