Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's engagement couldn't be any more different than Charles and Diana's nearly 40 years earlier

Shana Lebowitz

May 17, 2018, 22:52 IST

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's engagement couldn't be any more different than Charles and Diana's nearly 40 years earlier

Prince Harry Meghan Markle engagement photos

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

You can infer a lot from the way a couple behaves in front of a camera. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle pictured.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are to wed Saturday.
We looked back at their engagement interview, and realized how different it is from Prince Charles and Princess Diana's, and even from Prince William and Kate Middleton's.
Body language experts have noticed that Prince Harry and Markle were more affectionate in their official announcement than the other two couples.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are unlike any royal couple that came before them.

You can tell that right away by watching their first public interview after they announced their engagement.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana often looked tense during their 1981 interview, and Prince William and Kate Middleton barely touched at all when they gave their interview in 2010. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, on the other hand, held hands, giggled, and gazed lovingly into each other's eyes.

One potential reason for these differences is that Prince Charles and Prince William are much higher in the line of succession to the English throne than Harry, who can act less formally knowing he's further removed from one day being king.

We took a look at what body language experts have said about the three engagement interviews, and what each couple's nonverbal cues might convey about their relationship.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana got engaged in 1981. Diana was 19 and Charles was 32.

They had only met each other 13 times when Prince Charles proposed.

During their engagement interview, Prince Charles and Princess Diana showed different facial expressions, body language expert Robin Kermode told The Express. "Charles looks assured while Diana often looks sadder when she is listening — her lips and mouth are held together, here eyebrows lifted and her cheeks pushed forward with watery eyes."

Kermode pointed out another interesting moment during the interview. When the interviewer asks Charles about the proposal, "Diana smiles, pulling her lips up and forward indicating she expected the engagement. This becomes almost a wry smile as if to say, 'I wonder if he will tell the actual story here.' Then as Charles continues to speak, her look changes — her lip corners are pulled right down and tight, her jaw is pushed forward and she takes her eyes away from him."

Prince Charles and Princess Diana's eldest son, Prince William, got engaged to Kate Middleton in 2010. They were both 28 years old.

The couple had known each other since their college days.

Harper's Bazaar reported that the couple rarely touched during their engagement interview, with the exception of a few pats on the knee.

They also looked mainly at the cameras and at the interviewer, instead of at each other.

Prince William's brother, Prince Harry, got engaged to Meghan Markle in 2017. Prince Harry was 33 and Markle was 36.

The couple were set up on a blind date by a mutual friend, and were engaged less than two years later.

Body language expert Darren Stanton observed to The Independent that, while Markle sometimes seemed more confident than Harry, she glanced at him after answering a question to make sure he was happy with her response.

Stanton also noted that Prince Harry and Markle held hands throughout the entire interview, and made prolonged eye contact. Stanton said, "It's clear from that gesture alone the two are truly in love and besotted with each other."

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