Lifestyle

Duchess Meghan delivers poignant speech at charity book launch as mum Doria and Prince Harry watch on

The Duchess's first project was "a tremendous labour of love".
Loading the player...

Duchess Meghan has launched a new charity cookbook at Kensington Palace with Prince Harry and her mum Doria Ragland by her side – the first public appearance the mother and daughter have made since the royal wedding in May.

The trio were all smiles for the touching event, which brought together women who were affected by the Grenfell Tower tragedy. They have created over 50 recipes for the cookbook, called Together, which includes a foreword from Markle herself.

Duchess Meghan and her mum Doria Ragland arrive at the cookbook launch with Prince Harry.

The royal trio worked their way around the event helping the women cook food.

Meghan delivered a poignant three-minute speech without the aide of notes, saying: “I’m so excited to see the projects are going to continue [sic] in your own community, the community at large and also how you’re going to inspire people globally by sharing your stories and your recipes.”

She also called the project “a tremendous labour of love”, expressing how the warmth and kindness of the women had helped her settle into London.

“I felt so immediately embraced,” she said.

As Meghan spoke, Harry and Doria watched on looking incredibly proud of the 37-year-old.

“To be able to be in this city and to see in this one small room how multicultural it was, on a personal level I feel so proud to live in a city that can have so much diversity,” Meghan said.

“I said in the forward that this is more than a cookbook, and what I mean by that is the power of food is more than just the meal itself, it is the story behind it.”

“When you get to know the story of the recipe you get to know the person behind it, and that’s what we’re talking about in terms of coming together to really engage and talk, and to be able to celebrate what connects us rather than what divides us.”

“That I believe is ethos of Together.”

Markle delivered a touching speech at the event.

Harry and Doria watched on proudly as Meghan spoke to the women who had been affected by the Grenfell Tower tragedy.

Ever the foodie, Meghan ended the touching tribute to the women with a smile: “So on that note, I know some of you have already started eating, as you should! I’d be the last one to want the food to get cold.”

The Duchess clearly impressed attendees, with some sharing her words on social media. Daily Mail royal correspondent Chris Ship shared a clip of Meghan’s speech saying: “Meghan speaks for 3 mins without notes as she thanks the women of #hubbcommunitykitchen for ‘her first project'”

Watch the full video above!

During the event, the royal trio worked their way around the tables helping the women prepare the homemade meals.

Meghan looked radiant as usual in a blue coat and black dress ensemble, while Doria wore a chic beige outfit – they do say ‘like mother like daughter’!

The royal trio were all smiles at the event.

Plenty of laughs were shared.

Doria introduced herself to the women at the event as “Megs mum” according to Hello!, adding that she was “head over heels” proud of her.

She also shared some powerful words with the event attendees: “The power of women…We make things happens. We’re curious, we say yes, we show up. I’m inspired.”

The cookbook was a “labour of love” for Markle.

Prince Harry also lived up to his humorous nature we know and love him for. The journalist also caught a clip of the ginger Prince pinching some samosas, before giving a cheesy smile and cheeky laugh to the camera. We’re onto you, Harry!

Watch the clip below:

Loading the player...

Meanwhile, the newlywed pair were also captured sharing a sweet moment as a gust of wind sent Meghan’s hair a bit skew-whiff. Harry quickly jumped to her aid to pat it back down as the Duchess laughed. Watch the adorable clip below:

Loading the player...

It’s no secret the Duchess is a fan of food – before marrying into the royal family, she wrote a blog, The Tig. The blog’s name actually stemmed from her favorite kind of wine and “a word she uses to describe moments when something really clicks into place for her.”

It was self-described as “A hub for the discerning palate – those with a hunger for food, travel, fashion, and beauty.”

After seeing the Duchess put on such an impressive display of compassion and understanding of these women at the event, we’re excited to see what’s next for Markle!

Related stories