Meghan Markle Speaks out in First Interview Since Oprah Winfrey Sit-Down

Three months after she and her husband Prince Harry sat down for their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey that grabbed global headlines, Meghan Markle has delivered her first interview. The Duchess of Sussex, who recently welcomed her second child, joined NPR Weekend Edition on Sunday amid the release of her first book, The Bench, the children’s book she wrote after finding inspiration by the bond between her husband and their son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.

When Markle first announced her book would be hitting the shelves, she revealed that The Bench was based on a poem she wrote for Harry for Father’s Day 2019, which fell just weeks after they welcomed their first child. During the interview, Markle further opened up about that Father’s Day celebration, revealing that after giving it some thought she decided to give her husband a bench for the occasion, because she “just wanted something sentimental and a place for him to have as a bit of a home base with our son.” On the back of the bench is a plaque with Markle’s poem – “This is your bench/ Where life will begin/ For you and our son/ Our baby, our kin” – which she said she wrote after watching Harry bonding with their son.

“I often find, and especially in this past year, I think so many of us realized how much happens in the quiet,” she said. “It was definitely moments like that, watching them from out of the window and watching [my husband] just, you know, rock him to sleep or carry him or, you know … those lived experiences, from my observation, are the things that I infused in this poem.”

Markle eventually decided to turn the poem into a book, titled The Bench, which is a series of vignettes featuring touching moments between fathers and sons. The picture book is also “infused” with “lots of little small moments like that that were personal memories or anecdotes,” including her late mother-in-law Princess Diana’s favorite flower and the family’s beloved rescue chickens. Markle, who recruited Christian Robinson for the illustrations, said The Bench is “a love story.”

“It’s really just about growing with someone and having this deep connection and this trust so that, be it good times or bad, you know that you had this person,” she told NPR. “I really hope that people can see this as a love story that transcends the story of my family.”

Officially releasing on June 8 by Penguin Random House, The Bench reached No. 1 on The New York Times Bestseller list for children’s picture books. Following the achievement, Markle shared a message of gratitude to the Archewell Foundation website, thanking fans for “supporting me in this special project.” She added that “while this poem began as a love letter to my husband and son, I’m encouraged to see that its universal themes of love, representation and inclusivity are resonating with communities everywhere.”