‘Harry & Meghan’: Meghan Markle Compares Meeting Queen Elizabeth II To Going To Eat At Medieval Times!

The majority of the new Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan covers the relationship between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle since their first meeting in 2016 with a relatively serious tone. The pair offer straightforward commentary about things like the sensationalized media coverage and racist attacks against Meghan throughout the three available episodes, keeping the vibe of the whole thing polished and sincere. There is one moment that stands out in contrast to the rest though, and that is Meghan’s telling of the moment she first met Queen Elizabeth II, which she likened to going to … Medieval Times?!?

“It wasn’t some big moment of like, ‘And now you’re gonna meet my grandmother,'” Meghan says. “I didn’t know I was going to meet her until moments before.” As a result, Meghan was taken off guard by the fact that she would have to curtsy before her future grandma-in-law when she was told Queen Elizabeth II would be attending lunch at the Royal Lodge near Windsor Castle with Meghan and Harry.

“I remember we were in the car and he said, ‘Yyou know how to curtsy, right?’ And I just thought it was a joke,” she says.

“How do you explain that to people?” Harry adds. “How do you explain that you bow to your grandmother? …Like, that’s weird.”

“Americans will understand this, we have Medieval Times, dinner and tournament, it was like that. I curtsied as though I was like –” Meghan then waves her arms and bows with great flourish, holding for a beat while Harry looks off camera, and then she finishes, saying, “Pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty!”

It’s impossible to tell is Harry is as tickled by this comparison as Meghan is (I’m guessing the reference may be lost on him — do we really think Harry has seen The Cable Guy? — and that Harry has never dined somewhere where silverware is only provided upon request), his face is hard to read as she finishes her dramatic interpretation of the meeting, but Harry later adds that his entire family was impressed by Meghan upon meeting her.

“I didn’t know what I was doing,” she admits, but despite all of that, Harry explains that Meghan made a great first impression on everyone in the family, regardless of her lack of curtsy experience.