Prince Philip reportedly had his concerns about Meghan Markle right from when she first together with Prince Harry and tried to warn Queen Elizabeth, according to an expert.

The late Queen and many of the royals welcomed the former actress into the family circle, but her husband was apparently always “wary” of her and her “charm offensive”.

Comparisons were made between Meghan and another American who married into the Firm back in the 1930s – Wallis Simpson, known as the Duchess of Windsor after she married Edward VIII.

Royal author Ingrid Seward explained in her book ‘My Mother and I”: “Soon the country as a whole seemed to take to Meghan with equally genuine delight.

“One of the few wary of succumbing to her charm offensive, however, was Prince Philip. While the Queen continued to champion Harry’s new love, he warned his wife to be cautious.

“Queen Elizabeth II was perfectly aware of what Philip meant when he drew parallels between Meghan and Wallis. Indeed, much later, she would remark in her clipped way that perhaps Harry had been ‘too in love’ with the American actress.”

Ms Seward also revealed to GB News that the late Prince Philip had a secret nickname for Meghan, but he was careful not to use it around other people.

She said: “I think Prince Philip was very canny about people and he didn’t always see the bad in them, he tried to see the good in them.

“I think he just couldn’t get away from the fact [of the] similarities between Meghan and Harry and Edward and Mrs Simpson. There are so many similarities which is why he used to call her The Duchess of Windsor, I mean not to her face. We used to call her dow – DoW [the abbreviation for Duchess of Windsor].”

Edward’s decision to marry twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson in 1936 led to him abdicating the throne in favour of his younger brother George VI, the late Queen’s father.

Afterwards, they were referred to by their titles, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and lived in France together until their dying days, never reconciling with the royals.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their intentions to step down as working royals in early 2020, less than two years after their wedding at Windsor.

They settled in Montecito in California later that year, where they are currently raising their two children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.