Instagram is littered with pictures of Meghan Markle – from accounts solely dedicated to capturing every outfit she wears, to avid royal fans sharing personal tributes to the Duchess.
And while these photos aren’t necessarily approved to be shared with the public by Meghan herself, she can’t really expect to have control over what is posted about her… well, until now it might seem.
Thousands of pictures of Duchess Meghan are shared across the world each day. (Image: Getty Images)
The Duchess of Sussex has got people talking a-plenty this week after her surprise appearance at the British Fashion Awards.
Taking to the stage, the former Suits star presented the British Womenswear Designer of the Year award to Claire Waight Keller of Givenchy, the very same designer who created her wedding dress.
But that wasn’t the only thing that caught everyone by surprise.
Following the ceremony, a candid image of Meghan, Keller and British actress Rosamund Pike appeared on the British Fashion Council’s Instagram after it was shared by an event photographer.
Another image of Meghan was also posted by her long-time pal and stylist Jessica Mulroney, along with the caption: “My angel. Beauty, grace and strength personified.”
And while both images are lovely tributes to the very stylish royal, they’ve mysteriously been deleted from both official accounts… coincidence?
While it’s expected that royal Instagram accounts heavily filter what is posted to the public platform, it’s a strange move from the non-royal accounts to also follow suit.
Even so, it is thought that the picture was removed due to the strict rules surrounding the royal family and their public appearances.
It’s no secret that the royals are required to follow some seriously strict (and at times, downright strange) rules.
These include, but are not limited to being unable to accept food from strangers (yep, even tea and scones!) and having a rather strict cut-off period when dining with the Queen.
Indeed, if you’re ever lucky enough to dine with Her Majesty, etiquette dictates that guests and her family members must finish their meal as soon as the Queen has had enough to eat herself – too bad if you’ve still got half a burger on your plate that you’re keen to vacuum up.
WATCH: Duchess Meghan at the British Fashion Awards. Post continues after video…
And while a simple image to Instagram mightn’t do any harm, going by these aforementioned rules, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Palace had deemed the photo unsuitable for public consumption.
Protocol or not, Megs has certainly not held back from testing boundaries since joining the royal fold.
From her penchant for wearing black, which is normally reserved for times of mourning by the royal family, to closing her own car door (gasp) – the Duchess isn’t one to shy away from making a statement.
Meghan’s colour of choice seems to be black. (Image: Getty)
And she’s not the only royal known to test boundaries – the Queen herself has also proved rules shouldn’t be taken so seriously.
In fact, Michelle Obama herself shared an anecdote from her meeting with the Queen a few years back.
The former US First Lady was attending a presidential visit with husband Barack, the Queen, and Prince Philip. Understandably, Michelle admitted, she was a complete bag of nerves.
“I had all this protocol buzzing in my head and I was like ‘don’t trip down the stairs and don’t touch anybody, whatever you do,” Michelle said.
But the Queen was quick to calm down the 54-year-old.
“And so the Queen says ‘just get in, sit wherever’ and she’s telling you one thing and you’re remembering protocol and she says ‘Oh it’s all rubbish, just get in’.”
