Meghan Markle’s former bodyguard says duchess got a ‘bad rap’

Meghan Markle’s former bodyguard, who worked with her in the years leading up to the explosive royal rift, has given an incredible insider’s account of how it all went down.

The man who was hired to protect Meghan Markle after the news she was dating Prince Harry broke has revealed what really happened in the tumultuous early days of the royal relationship.

Steve Davies was hired by NBC, the network behind television series Suits on which Meghan starred, to shadow the duchess in 2018.

Photographers focus on US actor Meghan Markle as she leaves a service at Westminster Abbey in 2018. Picture: AFP.

Mr Davies has given a tell-all interview to In Touch magazine describing what he saw as the world’s paparazzi swarmed.

“(I) felt sorry (for her) because she’d gone from being a celebrity to being a member of the biggest family in the world,” Mr Davies said.

“We had people following us around everywhere we went. We had problems with drones, vehicles chasing us. It was a nightmare.”

Steve Davies protected Meghan Markle while she filmed Suits. Picture: Supplied

In stark contrast to other former staffers of Meghan and her husband Prince Harry, Mr Davies has a soft spot for his old boss whose life he described as living in a “goldfish bowl” as they continued filming Suits in Toronto, Canada during the period of intense media interest.

He defended Meghan against allegations she is a bully who has been given the unkind nickname “Duchess Difficult”.

The home in Toronto where Meghan Markle lived while filming Suits was under siege by paparazzi. Photo: Supplied

“There’s one huge lesson I learnt from her. It’s give respect to get respect,” Mr Davies said.

The bodyguard even expressed genuine fear for her ongoing safety.

“(I worried) what happened to Princess Diana might have happened to her,” Mr Davies said.

The revelation comes after Larissa May, the co-founder of advocacy group #HalfTheStory shared a touching anecdote with Vanity Fair about Meghan’s interaction with a group teenage girls at a recent social media workshop.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have long raised concerns about the impact of being followed everywhere they go. Picture: AFP.

Steve Davies had nothing but good things to say about his old boss. Picture: AFP.

“We did an activity where we talked through a bunch of scenarios, and Meghan talked about being one of the most bullied people in the world,” Ms May said.

“We had girls wave these little emoji signs and talk about how each one of these scenarios would have impacted them emotionally.

“We really wanted to make sure that the teens at #HalfTheStory were able to give their input on the type of experience that we would create. Ultimately, we thought the best way to do that was to create a space of vulnerability.”

Meghan and Harry have lived in California since their dramatic exit from Britain in 2020.

Harry is fighting an ongoing legal battle for taxpayer funded security when he and his family are on British soil.

Originally published as Meghan Markle’s former bodyguard says duchess got a ‘bad rap’