Royal Family

‘Happy’ Prince Harry, Meghan Markle have romantic date night in Austin ahead of her SXSW appearance

Everything’s bigger in Texas — including their love.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle enjoyed a romantic date night at Soho House Austin ahead of the Duchess of Sussex’s keynote panel appearance at the 2024 SXSW conference.


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The Duke of Sussex, 39, and his wife, 42, were spotted at the ritzy members-only club Thursday night looking “happy and in great spirits,” a source told People.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, seen here in Germany last year, enjoyed a date night at Soho House Austin on Thursday. WireImage
A source said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex looked “happy and in great spirits.” MEGA
The pair had dinner together. Getty Images for the Invictus Games Foundation

The couple were seated in a secluded corner booth where they could cozy up to each other over dinner.

“Harry was very animated throughout the dinner,” the source added. “They were super low-key and seemed happy to be around the upbeat vibes at the lively venue.”

The private social club has a special place in their hearts, as Harry took the “Suits” alum to Soho House in London for their first date when they started seeing each other in July 2016.

They were at the exclusive venue ahead of Markle’s SXSW appearance. sohohouse/Instagram
The couple were seated in a corner booth. sohohouse/Instagram
“Harry was very animated throughout the dinner,” the source added. Getty Images

“Red-cheeked, puffing, sweaty, half an hour late, I ran into the restaurant, into the quiet room, and found her sitting at a small area on a low velvet sofa in front of a low coffee table,” he recalled in his 2023 memoir, “Spare.”

The Invictus Games founder recalled Markle wearing a black sweater, jeans and heels on the date.

“I knew nothing about clothes, but I knew she was chic. Then again, she could make anything look chic,” he wrote.

The pair “were super low-key and seemed happy to be around the upbeat vibes at the lively venue.” Getty Images Ms. Foundation for Women
The Sussexes had their first date at Soho House in London.
The Invictus Games founder recalled the date in his memoir, “Spare.”

“I’d seen so many photos of her from fashion shoots and TV sets, all glam and glossy, but here she was, in the flesh, no frills, no filter… and even more beautiful. Heart-attack beautiful.”


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Harry remembered being so nervous on the date that his brain “couldn’t handle any more data.”

“Conversation, pleasantries, the Queen’s English, all became a challenge,” he admitted.

Harry also wrote about spending the night at Markle’s hotel room at the members-only club when they first started dating.
The couple married in 2018.

The BetterUp chief impact officer also recalled a more steamy memory from the London spot in his bombshell tome when he met Markle at her hotel room the following night.

“I want to say we hung a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the door. But I don’t think there was time,” he wrote, rehashing how Markle pulled him into the room and “slammed the door quickly before anyone saw.”

The next morning, Harry hid under their covers as room service came and delivered breakfast to the lovebirds.

The pair resigned from their royal duties in 2020. Samir Hussein/WireImage
They now live in Montecito, Calif., with their two kids. Samir Hussein/WireImage

The Archewell co-founders married in May 2018 and now reside in Montecito, Calif., with their two kids — Prince Archie, 4, and Princess Lilibet, 2 — after quitting their royal duties in January 2020.

However, the couple have pledged to continue their philanthropic endeavors, with Markle focusing much of her efforts on women’s empowerment.

The duchess is scheduled to speak on a SXSW panel titled “Breaking Barriers, Shaping Narratives: How Women Lead On and Off the Screen” on Friday alongside Katie Couric, Brooke Shields and Nancy Wang Yuen with moderator Errin Haines.