Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton Are Polar Opposites, Says Royal Expert

This week, Meghan Markle shook-up New York City as she arrived for quite the extravagant baby shower — a bash that one royal expert believes proves just how different the former actress is from Kate Middleton.

Rupert Bell says that the baby shower, which is believed to have cost $200,000 during the two-day celebration, shows how much the Duchess of Sussex, 37, wants to “be herself” and “run her own sort of show.” “It is good for her that she is confident that she is not intimidated by the royal family,” Bell said while speaking on talkRADIO, adding that she’s the “polar opposite” to the Duchess of Cambridge, 37.

Bell continued, “That is one of the reasons she wanted to get away from being cooped up at Kensington Palace because she felt that all four of them together, it was too much, she wanted breathing space away so she could be herself and run her own sort of show as it were.” Bell adds, “I think that was the first indication, it wasn’t a straight forward decision, there were bits of fallout, but that was an indication that she is her own person and wants to continue to operate in that environment.”

The royal commentator also said, “This is a sort of, throw of the dice, to say, ‘don’t keep me down. I may be about to have a baby but if I want to throw a party I can do it.” He added, “In a way, Kate is a traditional, English rose as it were.”

It is pretty clear that the Suits alum may be a bit more modern when it comes to the way she tackles things, while Prince William‘s wife follows the guidelines, which is closer to what the royal family is used to. “We have got the polar opposite in a confident American, who has had a successful career in her own right, coming into an organization where they like things done, where the knives and forks are put in the right place,” Bell said.