She cut her teeth as a ‘suitcase girl’ before landing her breakthrough role on Suits.
But one of Meghan Markle’s co-workers has claimed she already had all the makings of royalty during her stint on Deal or No Deal.
Presenter Howie Mandel has described Meghan, 37, as being ‘slightly duchessy’ when they worked together on the NBC game show between 2006 and 2007.
Speaking on a Television Critics Association panel this week, Mandel – who also worked with model Chrissy Teigen on the show – said: ‘Not everybody will have an opportunity to meet royalty, but these are all accomplished people that have something substantial.
Meghan Markle (far right) joins Howie Mandel and fellow suitcase girls on NBC’s Deal or No Deal in 2006. She starred on the show for just under two years before landing a role in Suits
The Duchess of Sussex pictured at a charity polo match in Windsor, July 2018. Meghan has been described as ‘slightly duchessy’ by her former Deal or No Deal colleague Howie Mandel
‘They’re not just standing there holding a case — they have careers, they have hobbies, they have families, they’re entrepreneurial,’ he added, according to People.
‘So when somebody like [Prince] Harry meets somebody who just happened to be on our show, there’s a lot to offer.’
When asked what the newbie royal was like in the studio, Mandel replied: ‘She was slightly duchessy’.
Meghan worked on Deal or No Deal as she struggled to make ends meet following a stint in the US Embassy in Argentina.
She has previously described the gig as a ‘learning experience’, telling Esquire: ‘I would end up standing up there forever in these terribly uncomfortable and inexpensive five-inch heels just waiting for someone to pick my number so I could go and sit down.’
Meghan during her Deal or No Deal years, starring on season two. She worked on the show as a jobbing actress before landing her breakthrough role in legal drama Suits
Deal or No Deal host Howie Mandel pictured in New York City in May. He was speaking about Meghan Markle this week amid news that his show will be returning to screens later this year
Ten years later, in July 2016, she started dating Prince Harry before the pair announced their engagement in November 2017.
‘Suitcase girls’ are mini dress-clad models responsible for carrying and opening the metal briefcases containing cash on the show, which is set to return to screens later this year.
Several of Meghan’s former colleagues lifted the lid on working with her after her relationship with Harry became public, sharing memories of Meghan’s time on the show.
‘Meghan is beautiful, smart, talented, I feel she absolutely deserves to be a princess,’ former suitcase girl Aubrie Lemon told Inside Edition.
‘One day she was next to me getting fitted for her dress, and the next day she’s going to be the future princess,’ Leyla Milani joked.’She was always reading scripts behind the scenes when we had our down time… she was always working on her craft.’
WHAT IS DEAL OR NO DEAL?
Deal or No Deal was a televised game show which aired on NBC between December 2005 and May 2009.
In the US version of the game, which was based on an international show of Dutch origin, contestants had to pick from a line-up of 26 numbered suitcases, each of which contained a monetary value from one penny to $1 million.
Presenter Howie Mandel and his ‘suitcase girls’ on Deal or No Deal
The aim was to eliminate as many low numbers as possible; the amount in the final case is the amount of money the contestant would take home.
Every time a case is chosen, the model responsible for it would step forward and present it, before opening it up to reveal the amount inside.
During the game, the contestant would also receive input from a character known as ‘The Banker’ – a silhouetted figure who would contact the player via telephone and offer to buy them out of the game before they reached the end.
They then had the option of accepting or carrying on by answering the question posed by host Howie Mandel: ‘Deal or no deal?’
It is set to return to screens in a new format later this year on CNBC.