From Suits star to Duchess of Sussex: Meghan Markle's life in pictures
No one ever expected Meghan Markle - an American-born actress - to become a member of the British royal family, but that's exactly what she did after falling in love with Prince Harry in the mid-2010s.
At first, she was beloved.
Royal experts and members of the public called her a "breath of fresh air" for the monarchy, a living symbol of the centuries-old institution finally entering a modern, progressive era.
But just a few years after her wedding, the British press and much of the public had turned on her.
Keep reading to learn where Meghan came from, how she found fame, and what caused her royal fairytale to turn on its head.
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It's the photo the world was waiting for – a gorgeous snap of one of the world's most famous families we haven't seen publicly together in years.
The picture was shared as part of a tradition the family partakes in every time December rolls around.
The oh-so-normal family photo seemed to hark back to Meghan's own childhood as a regular little girl growing up in the US.
Meghan made her TV debut at age 20, when she appeared in a small role as a nurse on daytime soap opera General Hospital, which her dad had worked on for years.
After General Hospital, Meghan worked her way through a number of small guest roles on TV shows like Century City, The War at Home and CSI: NY, and Fringe, but struggled to land any recurring acting jobs.
As a mixed-race woman, Meghan felt that she "wasn't black enough for the black roles and I wasn't white enough for the white ones".
Between acting and modelling gigs, she made ends meet by working odd jobs as a freelance calligrapher and taught bookbinding at the Paper Source store in Beverly Hills.
In 2006, she landed a new gig as a glamorous "briefcase girl" on the US version of the game show Deal or No Deal.
Though it probably wasn't the most exciting moment in her career, it served as an important stepping stone as she worked to break into Hollywood.
Within a few years, she was scoring bigger credits in movies like Get Him to the Greek, Remember Me and The Candidate in 2010, followed by the flick Horrible Bosses in 2011.
Though the roles weren't huge, it was clear that Meghan was moving up in the entertainment world - and her biggest moment was still yet to come.
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As well as her acting work, Meghan was known as a passionate humanitarian and advocate.
In the 2010s, she served as a global ambassador for World Vision and worked with disadvantaged women and girls in nations like Rwanda and India.
And in 2015, Meghan delivered a moving speech about gender equality and feminism at the annual UN Women's Conference on International Women's Day.
"Women need a seat at the table, they need an invitation to be seated there, and in some cases, where this is not available, well then, you know what, they need to create their own table," she told the crowd.
"It is said that girls with dreams become women with vision. May we empower each other to carry out such vision – because it isn't enough to simply talk about equality. One must believe in it. And it isn't enough to simply believe in it. One must work at it. Let us work at it. Together. Starting now."
Before becoming truly famous, Meghan had a few personal milestones to tick off.
She'd met American film producer Trevor Engelson in the early 2000s and by 2004, the pair were an item.
They dated for seven years and he even produced Remember Me, a 2010 film she had a small role in, before they decided to tie the knot in a tropical wedding ceremony at the Jamaica Inn in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
Meghan wore a strapless white gown with a jewelled belt and danced on the beach with her new husband after they said "I do" on August 16, 2011.
The wedding came just one month after Meghan landed what would turn out to be the biggest role of her career.
Countless little girls dream of meeting a prince and falling in love, but Meghan became one of the few who actually did it.
She and Prince Harry first said they met on a blind date in mid-2016, which had been set up by one of their mutual friends (believed to be designer Misha Nonoo) while Meghan was visiting the UK.
The couple later clarified that Harry first saw a video of Meghan on his friend's Instagram feed and had the friend reach out to her via email, saying that Harry wanted to meet her.
The pair then exchanged numbers and went on two back-to-back dates in the UK before Meghan had to return to Canada to continue filming suits. Despite the fact they'd only just met, Harry knew he'd found someone special.
"This beautiful woman just tripped and fell into my life, I fell into her life," Harry later told reporters of the start of their love story.
Harry invited Meghan to join him in Botswana a few weeks later, where they got to know each other in private before starting up a serious relationship.
The couple had to keep their romance a secret at first, as they wanted to avoid public scrutiny and paparazzi for as long as possible, but it didn't last long.
In November 2016, fans spotted the actress and princess wearing matching bracelets at separate events and the rumours - and criticism - started flying.
Harry then made the very rare move of confirming the news via a statement from Kensington Palace, where he made it clear that Meghan didn't deserve the "wave of abuse and harassment" she'd copped since their romance had been uncovered.
The couple made their first public appearance at the Invictus Games in Canada, where Meghan was filming Suits, about a year later in September 2017.
They walked into the event holding hands and whispered into each other's ears as they watched a tennis match between Australia and New Zealand players and the photos made headlines around the world.
"We're two people who are really happy and in love," Meghan had told Vanity Fair in an interview shortly before their outing, and it showed.
Fans were delighted to finally get a glimpse into Harry and Meghan's fairytale romance, not realising how far along it had already progressed.
On November 28, 2017 the couple announced they were engaged following an 18-month courtship.
"His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales is delighted to announce the engagement of Prince Harry to Ms. Meghan Markle," the statement from Clarence House read.
During the photo call in The Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace later that day, Harry admitted he knew Meghan was 'The One' from "the very first moment we met".
During their engagement interview in the evening, the couple revealed the royal got down on one knee in the kitchen of their cottage, while the pair were cooking a roast chicken.
"It was just an amazing surprise. It was so sweet, and natural and very romantic," Meghan told BBC reporter Mishal Husain.
"I could barely let you finish, I was like, 'Can I say yes now?'" she said, looking to Harry.
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