In pictures: Meghan Markle is the queen of the 2016 throwback trend with these iconic snaps
An icon! A legend!
The year of 2016 was a major one for Meghan Markle. The now Duchess of Sussex met none other than Prince Harry, her literal Prince Charming.
And from there, her fairytale began.
But it wasn’t just a flourishing romance that made the year special for Meghan.
It is safe to say she was the It Girl. And the photographs she was snapped in at the time really prove it. Let’s take a look back…
2016 was a big year for Meghan Markle
Social media is saying 2026 is the new 2016 and we’re here for it. Especially when it means looking back on some ICONIC throwbacks of Meghan.
2016 was a successful year for Meghan Markle. Not only did she bag the love of her life, she was a lifestyle blogger (goals), the stunning love interest on a hit show AND as fashionable as ever (pardon the pun).
Megs and Harry first hit things off at a private members club at Soho House in London in July of 2016, after being set up on a blind date by friends.
At the time, Meghan was best known for starring as Rachel, a beautiful para-legal on Suits, as well as running her lifestyle, fashion and beauty blog, The Tig.
When Harry met Meghan
Prince Harry later described Meghan as “heart-attack beautiful,” upon laying eyes on her. And we can see why!
By August, things were already heating up between the couple and they even enjoyed their first holiday together.
“It was three, maybe four, weeks later that I managed to persuade her to come join me in Botswana, and we camped out with each other, under the stars,” Harry recalled in the post-engagement BBC interview he and Meghan sat down for in 2017. “She came and joined me for five days out there, which was absolutely fantastic. Then we were really by ourselves, which was crucial to me to make sure that we had a chance to get to know each other.”
A few months into their relationship, as Meghan blushingly admitted whilst starring on Ellen, she and Prince Harry hit the town for the last time before their relationship was to be confirmed in the press.
The couple also described this night out in their 2022 Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan.
The duo recalled that they dressed up for an apocalypse-themed party in Toronto with Harry’s cousin Princess Eugenie and Eugenie’s then-boyfriend-now-husband, Jack Brooksbank.
Meghan Markle’s life before Harry
Meghan was still living in Toronto at the time, where she was filming Suits and the impromptu evening in costume meant they could have one last hurrah before things got a little bit more serious.
By November 2016, Meghan was well and truly thrust into the spotlight.
All eyes were on her as Buckingham Palace implored the public to stop their ongoing harassments of Harry and “his girlfriend, Meghan Markle.”
Despite the mounting pressure, Meghan was well and truly the woman to watch – and she was EVERYWHERE!
Meghan’s thriving career was already on full display by that point. But what was she up to outside of her blossoming relationship with Harry?
Meghan Markle’s iconic Instagram posts
From flaunting her trendy fashion on Instagram to sharing lifestyle tips in the mags and offering a glimpse into the glitz and glamour of being an actress, Meghan seemed to have it all.
In May of 2016, Meghan starred on the cover of Best Health magazine. There, she stunned in a sophisticated white dress.
In an interview for the mag, she dished on how she liked to stay in shape at the time.
“Yoga is my thing. My mom is a yoga instructor. And I started doing mommy-and-me yoga with her when I was seven. I was very resistant as a kid. But she said, ‘Flower, you will find your practice. Just give it time.’ In college, I started doing it more regularly.”
Quite fitting, as that year she was regularly snapped with a Yoga mat under her arm. Somehow she managed to look effortlessly cool in shades and a scarf, whilst being papped by photographers.
Looking back at what the Duchess of Sussex shared at the time
In October, Meghan again chatted with reporters, this time in Good Housekeeping, where she shed light on her love for cooking.
In hindsight, it seems Meghan was manifesting the adorable moment where Prince Harry would pop the question the following year in 2017 – whilst roasting a chicken with Megs.
She told Good Housekeeping at the time when asked if she liked to cook: “There is nothing as delicious (or as impressive) as a perfectly roasted chicken. If you have an Ina Garten-level roasted-chicken recipe, it’s a game changer. I bring that to dinner parties and make a lot of friends.”
By Fall of 2016, her collection with Canadian retailer Reitmans was released and the future duchess even modelled for the Quebec-based fashion brand, starring in a string of now iconic pics.
Meghan Markle is still all about food, fashion and lifestyle
It seems Meghan has kept her interests close to her heart over the years, despite skyrocketing to fame.
She still cooks, now on her popular Netflix series, As Ever, and she even has her own sell-out lifestyle products, like those she would review on The Tig.
Not only that, Meghan is still super stylish and just last year she looked fabulous as she stepped out at Paris Fashion Week in head-to-toe Balenciaga. We were obsessed.
If 2026 really is the new 2016, we want to see a telly return, a throwback vibe photoshoot and more cooking from Megs!
And hey, maybe the duchess should consider reviving The Tig!? Just saying!
So, what do you think of this story? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page.
