Meghan Markle was once ‘determined’ to boost her profile – as writer claims ‘she begged me to get her IN the tabloids’

APPEARING on ITV’s recent documentary, Meghan Markle insisted she hadn’t been prepared for – or wanted – the media attention of royal life.

But one showbiz editor says she wasn’t always so shy of the spotlight – and actually “begged me to get her in the tabloids”.

The Mail on Sunday‘s Katie Hind met the Duchess of Sussex, 38, in London’s trendy Soho in November 2013 – when she was an editor and columnist at the Sunday People.

According to Katie, Meghan’s UK publicist hounded her for a meeting – despite her having never heard of the actress or her TV show Suits.

“Keen to make a name in Britain, her UK publicist had all but begged me – then a showbusiness journalist for a red-top newspaper – to meet the actress for a drink,” Katie said.

“It soon became clear that Meghan was determined to raise her profile – even if it was with an inconsequential 80-word piece tagged onto the end of my weekly column.”

Katie, who sipped prosecco with the future Duchess until 11pm, says Meghan was “eager” to make her a friend.

She added: “All in all, she seemed grateful that I was helping. We even hugged.”

So the writer was surprised when she watched Meghan’s interview with Tom Bradbury on Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, where she insisted she was surprised by the unrelenting media attention.

The writer also claims Meghan asked her advice about dating then Chelsea defender Ashley Cole, who had followed the actress on Twitter and was “trying really hard”.

But Katie says she warned her away from the infamous footballer, explaining how cheating allegations had hounded his marriage to Cheryl.

Claiming Meghan looked disappointed, she says she felt “bad that I had crushed her dream of becoming a WAG.”

The revelation did, however, get Meghan a spot in Katie’s column – in which she explained how she’d turned down Ashley’s date offer.

It was on this same trip that Meghan met TV personality Lizzie Cundy – who previously chatted to Fabulous Digital about their brief friendship.