Meghan Markle's Childhood Friend Predicted British Press Would Be 'Mean' To Duchess

One of Meghan Markle's close pals had been "excited" but also "worried" after learning that the former actress was going to marry into the royal family.

The Duchess of Sussex's high school friend, Simone Burnes Dilley, was happy for Markle when she got engaged to Prince Harry in 2017. But Dilley was also concerned about how the British press would treat Markle, who was previously married to Hollywood producer Trevor Engelson, after her relationship with the prince became serious, Us Weekly reported.

"We were excited for her, but … at the same time, I was worried," Dilley said on the new episode of "E! True Hollywood Story" that aired Monday. "She was divorced, she’s half-Black. I was like, ‘Oh, my God. They’re gonna be so mean to her.’"

Prince Harry and Markle have openly criticized the British press over their alleged personal attacks and inaccurate coverage over the years.

Long before announcing their engagement, the Duke of Sussex released a statement in 2016 defending his then-girlfriend from the "abuse and harassment" Markle had been experiencing since rumors of their romance began to surface. He also attacked the "racial undertones of comment pieces and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments."

In October 2019, Prince Harry defended Markle once more by releasing a statement in which he compared his wife's "private suffering" to that of his late mother, Princess Diana.

"There comes a point when the only thing to do is to stand up to this behavior, because it destroys people and destroys lives," he wrote. "Put simply, it is bullying, which scares and silences people."

Prince Harry confirmed during his chat with James Corden in February that the "toxic" British press was one of the main reasons why he and Markle decided to step back from royal duties and move to the U.S.

"It was stepping back, rather than stepping down," he said of their royal departure in 2020. "You know it was a really difficult environment, as I think a lot of people saw. We all know what the British press can be like, and it was destroying my mental health. I was like, 'This is toxic.'"

"So I did what any husband, and what any father would do, is like, 'I need to get my family out of here,'" he explained.

Meanwhile, John Oliver's advice to Markle before her royal wedding to Prince Harry resurfaced after the couple's interview with Oprah Winfrey aired earlier this month. Many were shocked by how accurate his prediction was on how marrying a royal would affect the former actress' mental health. In the interview, Markle had admitted that there was a point during her time as a working royal where she "didn't want to be alive anymore."

"I would not blame [Meghan] if she pulled out of this at the last minute," Oliver said in 2018 on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" months before the Sussexes' wedding. "I don't think you need to have just seen the pilot episode of The Crown to get a basic sense that she might be marrying into a family that could cause her some emotional complications."

"They're an emotionally stunted group of fundamentally flawed people doing a very silly, pseudo job," Oliver said of the royal family. "That's what [Markle is] marrying into. So I hope she likes it. It's going to be weird for her."