Prince Harry reveals awkward Kate and Meghan encounter before ‘fab four’ public debut

The world watched in awe as the royal “fab four” hosted their first joint engagement in 2018 – but Harry has revealed things weren’t so smooth behind the scenes.

Meghan Markle’s first joint engagement with Kate Middleton, Prince William and Prince Harry in 2018 made headlines around the world, but things weren’t so smooth behind the scenes.

In Prince Harry’s explosive memoir, Spare, which is due to be released on January 10 but has since been leaked in Spain, the Duke of Sussex writes of an awkward moment between his then-fiancee Meghan, and his sister-in-law at their Royal Foundation Forum appearance in February 2018.

The 38-year-old Duke said the outing marked the beginning of Meghan and Kate being pitted against each other in the press, after journalists “sensed” tension during the panel.

And their instincts were on the money, with Harry revealing an uncomfortable private moment that unfolded between Meghan and Kate before the four hit the stage.

He writes how Meghan forgot to bring her own lip gloss, before casually asking Kate if she could borrow hers. He dubbed it an “American thing”.

“Kate, taken aback, went into her handbag and reluctantly pulled out a small tube,” Harry writes. “Meg squeezed some onto her finger and applied it to her lips. Kate grimaced.”

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There was tension behind the scenes at this forum of the ‘fab four’ according to Prince Harry’s new memoir. Picture: Chris Jackson – WPA Pool/Getty Images

Harry says the pair “should have been able to laugh about” it, but the press in the room “sensed” it was “something bigger”.

“I think it had Kate on edge while putting her and everyone else on notice that she was now going to be compared to, and forced to compete with, Meg,” Harry writes.

The royals were affectionately dubbed the ‘fab four’ after the headline-making engagement. Picture: Eddie Mulholland – WPA Pool/Getty Images

But press coverage of the engagement was largely glowing at the time, with the royals affectionately dubbed the “fab four”.

Harry, who is now a father-of-two, said he’d always dreamt of forging a working partnership with his older brother, Kate and his own partner – even before he met and fell in love the Suits star.

“I also said I couldn’t wait for them to meet her, that I looked forward to the four of us spending lots of time together, and I confessed, for the umpteenth time, that this had long been my dream – to join them with an equal partner,” Harry says.

“To become a foursome. I’d said this to Willy so many times, and he’d always replied: ‘It might not happen, Harold! And you’ve got to be OK with that.’ Well, now I felt that it was going to happen and I told him so – but he still said to slow down. She’s an American actress after all, Harold. Anything might happen.”

Harry has said he always dreamt of working closely with his older brother and their spouses. Picture: Paul Grover/WPA Pool/Getty Images

Elsewhere in the memoir, Harry reveals his physical fight with William in 2019, claims his father King Charles didn’t hug him after Diana’s death in 1997, and gives details about his sex life, including losing his virginity in a field at 17.

He also reveals he killed 25 people in Afghanistan.

Harry served two tours of duty against the Taliban, first as a forward air controller calling in air strikes in 2007-2008, then flying the attack helicopter in 2012-2013.