What was Prince Harry's Instagram when he met Meghan and was it public?

It turns out that Prince Harry's Instagram page was the catalyst for quite a life-changing event: his meeting now-wife Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex.

During the first episode of the Harry & Meghan Netflix docuseries, the couple opened up about how they first met, with Prince Harry revealing that he first noticed Meghan when he was scrolling through his Instagram feed and came across a selfie of Meghan sporting the then-popular "dog filter" from Snapchat, posted by a mutual friend and 

Harry then reached out to said mutual friend to inquire about Meghan, who in turn put Meg in touch with the royal—which was, of course, the beginning of a whole Harry and Meghan relationship timeline. During the episode, Meghan revealed that she then asked for Prince Harry's Instagram profile so that she could have a look at his feed, which was full of beautiful nature photos that she loved.

So what was Prince Harry's Instagram profile, was it public or private, and was it in line with royal protocol? And what was Meghan Markle's Instagram profile made up of at the time, and does she still use the social media platform? We have all the details...

What was Prince Harry's Instagram profile?

It turns out that before he met his now-wife Meghan, Prince Harry had a secret Instagram profile.

During the first episode of the Harry and Meghan docuseries, Meghan revealed that she loved Harry's Instagram profile, as it was full of nature photos. The couple showed a sneak peek of the feed, which looked like it was made up of photos from Harry's trips around the world, particularly to Africa.

Was Prince Harry's Instagram profile public?

Prince Harry's Instagram profile was not open to the public at the time. It was a private account, although there had been suspicion that he had a "finsta" account at the time, with the tell-all book Finding Freedom, written by Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, speculating that he used the platform under the username "@SpikeyMau5."

The writers explained: "Although she shared much of her London visit on social media, Meghan knew she had to keep her dates a secret. But the clues were there. Around the time of their first encounter, she began to follow a mysterious-looking Instagram account by the name of @SpikeyMau5."

Was Prince Harry allowed to have Instagram?

Members of the Royal Family are not allowed to run personal social media accounts. However, there are now several official public-facing Instagram accounts, which are run by the Royal Family and their team.

The first royals to have personal public-facing official Instagram accounts were Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, as they were not working royals. However, as Prince Harry was a senior royal at the time of meeting Meghan, he was likely not allowed to have a public-facing personal Instagram account.

Does Prince Harry have Instagram now?

As far as is known to the public, Prince Harry does not currently have an official Instagram account.

Do Prince Harry and Meghan have an Instagram account?

Prince Harry and Meghan do not currently run a public-facing Instagram account. The couple has not run an official Instagram account since closing down the "@sussexroyal" handle that they used when they were senior royals.

Does Meghan Markle have Instagram?

Meghan Markle doesn't currently have an official public-facing Instagram account that is known to the public. However, she was very active on social media before joining the Royal Family.

Operating under the handle "@meghanmarkle," the former Suits actress had more than three million followers and more than 2,000 posts showing her life, her activism and her work projects.

While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex ran their "@sussexroyal" account, it is believed that Meghan did play a role in writing some of the posts for their feed, though those would have been moderated by the official royal staff.

The first three-episode volume of Harry & Meghan is streaming now on Netflix.