Meghan Markle saw similarities between her royal life and Disney's "The Little Mermaid."- Markle, speaking to
Oprah Winfrey, compared herself to Ariel, who traded her voice to fall in love. - Markle said she felt "silenced" as a royal, but now her life is "greater than any fairy tale."
Meghan Markle compared her life as a working member of the
During "Oprah with Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special," Markle told Oprah Winfrey that she rewatched "The Little Mermaid" not long after marrying
"I was sitting in Nottingham Cottage, and 'The Little Mermaid' came on," Markle told Winfrey. "And who as an adult really watches 'The Little Mermaid'? But it came on, and I was like, 'Well, I'm here all the time - I might as well watch this,' and I went, 'Oh my God, she falls in love with the prince, and because of that she loses her voice."
"But in the end, she gets her voice back," Markle said.
Winfrey responded, saying: "And this is what happened here - you feel like you got your voice back?"
Markle nodded her head in response to Winfrey.
Markle likened her experience in the royal family to the Disney animated fairy tale while speaking with Winfrey in her and Harry's backyard chicken coop, which had an animal pen adorned with the words "Archie's Chick Inn Established 2021."
Markle said she was 'silenced' - not 'silent' - when she entered the royal spotlight
The couple made several bombshell revelations about their time as working members of the royal family during their two-hour special with Winfrey. For instance, Markle said that she was "silenced" when she entered the royal spotlight.
The Duchess of Sussex said in the interview: "I've always valued independence. I've always been outspoken, especially about women's rights, and that's the sad irony of the last four years, I've advocated for so long for women to use their voice. And then I was silent."
"Were you silent, or were you silenced?" Winfrey asked.
"The latter," Markle said.
Markle went on to say that as soon as she and Harry started their relationship, she was advised to decline to comment on false reports and rumors made about her in the press.
"Everyone in my world was given a very clear directive from the moment the world knew Harry and I were dating to always say 'no comment,'" Markle said.
Markle said that it wasn't until she and Harry were married that she started to feel unprotected.
"I came to understand that not only was I not being protected, but that they were willing to lie to protect other members of the family, but they weren't willing to tell the truth to protect me and my husband," Markle said.
Later in the interview, Markle told Winfrey that she's now enjoying being able to "live authentically" in her new chapter with Harry, their son Archie, and their baby girl on the way.
Markle said her story with Prince Harry is "greater than any fairy tale you've ever read."