Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s former nanny has admitted she compared herself to the Prince and Princess of Wales‘ au pair.
Lorren Khumalo, from Zimbabwe, was hired by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to care for their son Archie shortly after he was born in May 2019.
Appearing on episode of The Breakfast Club with Zenzele Ndebele, the pediatric nurse explained how nervous she was ahead of her first meeting with the couple, who were still living in Frogmore Cottage in Windsor at the time.
When she was approached by a representative for the new parents, Lorren had accompanied another family for their half term holiday in Germany.
Archie’s ex-nanny says she wasn’t sure what to wear for the interview
Lorren Khumalo (pictured with baby Archie in Frogmore Cottage) was hired by the couple in 2019 when Archie was still just a baby
Having raced back to the UK, Lorren said she agonized over what to wear to the interview and started comparing herself with Prince William and Kate Middleton’s Norland nanny Maria Barrallo.
As a graduate of the world’s leading childcare training institutions, the Prince and Princess of Wales’ au pair is often spotted wearing her distinctive Norland uniform – consisting of a beige crested dress, tie, loafers and a brown felt hat.
Lorren said: ‘I thought to myself, “I wonder how their nannies look, do they wear heels?”
‘Prince William has got a Norland Nanny, so they’ve got a brown uniform that for my skin color and the way it looks in khaki brown, I knew it wouldn’t even go, it would just not work.’
The couple’s ex-nanny (pictured during their Netflix special) explained how she agonised over what to wear before going to Frogmore Cottage for the first time
The Prince and Princess of Wales hired Norland nanny Maria Barrallo (pictured in 2015) when Prince George was just a few months old. Graduates of Norland often wear the institute’s traditional beige uniform with a matching tie and felt hat
Norland nanny Maria Borrallo pictured arriving at Pippa Middleton’s wedding in 2017 in her full uniform
Lorren says she eventually settled on a smart outfit and some kitten heels to look ‘presentable for a royal’.
She added: ‘But I didn’t use any make-up, I said if they take me, they take me as I am.
‘I wasn’t born with a silver spoon, I’m not blue blood, I will go as I am and trust me with my God, I’ll get this job.’
What’s more, Lorren said she was given a speeding ticket on the way to Frogmore Cottage for ‘driving too fast’.
Lorrren previously descried Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as ‘very hands on parents’ to their son Archie (pictured as a newborn)
Lorren worked for the couple when they were living in Frogmore Cottage (pictured) on the Windsor estate before they relocated to Montecito, California
Once she arrived in Windsor, Lorren said she had go through ‘lots of checks’ before she was allowed access to the couple’s home.
Moments before she met her future employer, the former nanny asked the Duke of Sussex’s protection officer is she needed to curtsy.
She added: ‘And he just looked at me and laughed and he said, “You’ll see, Prince Harry is amazing.”‘
Describing the moment she met Prince Harry for the first time, Lorren continued: ‘When I got there, the way he opened his arms ‘Hello Lorren!’ and gave me a hug.
Prince Harry is seen feeding Archie in his sushi themed high chair – Lorren described the Sussexes as ‘hands on’ parents
‘[I thought] “Wow, what a gentleman, what a gem”, oh my goodness, I couldn’t believe it. And when I walked in and saw Meghan I thought “My God, what a beautiful woman”.
‘I just felt so comfortable, it wasn’t so formal as I expected it to be, it was just a normal home.’
Last month, the Duke and Duchess’ ex-nanny also appeared in their Netflix docu-series and labelled them ‘really hands on parents’.
Lorren said the couple would come in to see baby Archie in the morning, and feed him before she took over and then take their newborn out for a stroll.
Meghan added: ‘She didn’t just take care of Archie she took care of us, she definitely took care of me.’
The professional nanny currently works as a neonatal intensive care (NICU) and pediatric nurse the Portland hospital, where Meghan gave birth to Archie in 2019.
