King Charles' unusual nickname for Meghan Markle revealed

The new King Charles' nickname for his daughter-in-law shows how much respect he had for her.

In the new book The New Royals, Katie Nicholl reveals that the monarch called Meghan Markle "Tungsten" after the hard grey metal with the highest melting point of all the metallic elements.

Nicholl writes: "Charles reportedly nicknamed his future daughter-in-law 'Tungsten' because of her toughness and resilience."

Meghan's nickname was reportedly born when she showed resilience during a joint appearance with Prince Harry, Prince William, and Kate Middleton at the Royal Foundation Forum in 2018.

"It was, according to one aide, the moment William and Kate, who was heavily pregnant, realised they needed to up their game," Nicholl writes.

"The Cambridges [now the Prince and Princess of Wales] had already signaled their intention to be more than 'ornamental royals' and had, along with Harry, made a huge success of their mental health campaign Heads Together.

"But Meghan was the breakout star of the foursome. She was polished, passionate and funny, using all her TV-honed skills to present her case. That was a wake-up moment for William and Kate when they realised that Meghan was very impressive, very confident, and very capable, according to a source."

Charles, 73, may have used the affectionate nickname four years ago, but it's unclear whether he still calls Markle Tungsten since she and Harry resigned from their royal roles and moved to California in 2020.

Tensions among the royals rose following Queen Elizabeth's death in September when the Duchess of Sussex reportedly asked to meet with Charles and clear the air.

The Sussexes attended the Queen's state funeral alongside William and Kate, the new Prince and Princess of Wales, though they were seemingly snubbed with seats in the second row.

This article was first published by the NZ Herald and is republished here with permission.