Princess Diana’s fashion legacy continues to influence the royal family, and Meghan Markle has delivered some of the most noticeable modern tributes to the late Princess of Wales. From bold color combinations to elegant gowns and relaxed vacation style, Meghan has repeatedly appeared in looks that remind royal watchers of Diana’s most memorable fashion moments.
What makes these comparisons particularly interesting is that Meghan has generally not copied Diana’s outfits piece for piece. Instead, many of her appearances use similar colors, silhouettes, styling details or accessories while adding a distinctly modern finish. That approach has allowed Diana’s fashion influence to appear across Meghan’s royal-era appearances as well as more recent public outings.
Here are 11 of the most striking occasions when Meghan Markle’s style echoed Princess Diana’s iconic wardrobe.
Key Takeaways
- Meghan Markle has repeatedly referenced elements of Princess Diana’s fashion.
- Several of the strongest similarities involve color, silhouette and styling rather than exact replicas.
- Meghan’s 2019 Birkenhead outfit echoed Diana’s memorable purple-and-red combination.
- Her Royal Ascot look in 2018 recalled one of Diana’s classic Ascot ensembles.
- Green maternity-inspired looks created another noticeable connection between the two women.
- Meghan’s 2024 and 2026 appearances show that the fashion influence has continued beyond her working-royal years.
1. The Purple-and-Red Birkenhead Look
One of Meghan Markle’s most memorable Princess Diana-inspired appearances came during her January 2019 visit to Birkenhead. While pregnant with Archie, Meghan stepped out in a rich purple maternity dress paired with a striking red coat.
The color combination immediately recalled an outfit Diana wore during a 1989 visit to Hong Kong, where the former Princess of Wales also embraced a dramatic purple-and-red pairing. Meghan’s version was more streamlined and contemporary, but the connection was difficult for royal fashion watchers to miss.
2. The Navy-and-White Birmingham Ensemble
During an International Women’s Day event in Birmingham in 2018, Meghan wore a navy-and-white J.Crew coat. The combination drew comparisons with an ensemble Diana wore during a 1995 visit to Hong Kong.
The similarity was especially noticeable in the clean contrast between navy and white. Rather than recreating Diana’s look exactly, Meghan used the same classic color language in a more modern coat silhouette.
3. The Little Black Dress Moment
Diana was well known for the versatility of the little black dress, a style that became an important part of her wardrobe. Meghan appeared to reference that understated approach at a 2018 cookbook event at Kensington Palace.
Her outfit combined a sleeveless black turtleneck with a pleated midi skirt. The look was different from Diana’s original outfit, but its polished simplicity echoed the late royal’s ability to make black dresses work for both formal and less traditional occasions.
4. The Royal Ascot Style Echo
Meghan’s first Royal Ascot appearance in 2018 created another strong Diana fashion comparison. She wore a white Givenchy ensemble with a black-and-white Philip Treacy fascinator.
The look was reminiscent of an outfit Diana wore at Ascot in 1986. Diana’s two-tone Victor Edelstein skirt suit was also completed with a coordinated hat, giving both royal appearances a similarly polished race-day feel.
5. The Pink Trooping the Colour Look
At Trooping the Colour in 2018, Meghan chose an off-the-shoulder pink Carolina Herrera dress. Although the outfit was not an exact recreation, its color and neckline brought back memories of a pink evening gown Diana wore to the Berlin Opera House in 1987.
The two dresses belonged to different eras, but both used a feminine off-the-shoulder silhouette and a soft pink palette to create a memorable formal appearance.
6. The Green Commonwealth Day Tribute
Meghan’s Commonwealth Day appearance in 2019 offered another subtle reference to Diana. She wore a forest-green Erdem coat with black detailing while attending a youth event at Canada House.
Diana had previously worn a green coat with black details during her pregnancy with Prince William in 1982. The matching color story and maternity context made Meghan’s outfit particularly noticeable among the many examples of Diana’s continuing influence.
7. The Purple One Young World Gown
At the One Young World Summit in 2019, Meghan stepped out in an amethyst-colored gown that recalled another memorable Diana fashion moment.
Diana had worn a similarly rich shade of purple in a Versace dress during a 1996 gala dinner in Chicago. Meghan’s gown offered a modern interpretation of the dramatic color, once again showing how a single shade can create a visual connection across different generations.
8. Another Green Look at Commonwealth Day
In 2020, Meghan returned to a familiar royal color story when she appeared in an emerald ensemble and fascinator for the Commonwealth Day Service.
The look was compared with a Catherine Walker outfit worn by Diana during Trooping the Colour in 1982. The rich green shade, formal styling and headpiece created one of the clearer visual links between Meghan’s royal wardrobe and Diana’s earlier fashion choices.
9. The 2024 Red-Gown Echo
Meghan’s connection to Diana’s fashion did not end when she stepped away from royal duties. At the 2024 Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Gala, she wore a striking black-and-white? No—the most notable feature was her halter-neck Carolina Herrera gown, which drew comparisons with a red strappy dress Diana wore to a charity dinner in 1995.
The silhouettes were not identical, but both looks relied on a sleek, sophisticated evening shape that highlighted the shoulders and neckline. It was another example of Meghan referencing the spirit of Diana’s style without simply reproducing an old outfit.
10. The 2026 All-White Style Moment
Meghan’s fashion references to Diana have also appeared in more relaxed settings. At a 2026 screening of Cookie Queens, she wore an all-white combination featuring white jeans, a tucked-in white top and a white blazer, finished with gold jewelry.
The outfit was compared with Diana’s 1994 summer shopping look in Knightsbridge, when Diana wore white jeans and a white top with a muted green jacket, brown belt and loafers. Meghan’s version removed the contrasting colors and created a cleaner monochromatic finish.
11. The Vacation Look That Recalled Diana
One of the more unexpected comparisons came from Meghan’s family vacation photos in 2026. In pictures shared from a beach day in Portugal, Meghan wore a black backless one-piece swimsuit with a white baseball cap and sneakers.
The relaxed combination reminded royal watchers of a 1993 vacation photograph of Diana in Nevis, where she was pictured in swimwear while spending time with members of her family, including Prince Harry. The comparison showed that Diana’s influence extends beyond formal royal clothing into casual summer style as well.
Why Meghan’s Diana-Inspired Style Continues to Attract Attention
The repeated comparisons between Meghan Markle and Princess Diana are not simply about wearing similar clothes. Diana helped establish a fashion language that mixed royal polish with approachable, modern pieces. Her use of bold colors, relaxed separates, statement accessories and memorable eveningwear made her wardrobe influential long after her death.
Meghan’s approach is generally more minimalist. Instead of reproducing Diana’s outfits exactly, she often appears to borrow one recognizable element, such as a color combination, silhouette, styling detail or type of garment, and then builds a contemporary outfit around it.
That distinction is important because the similarities are best understood as fashion echoes rather than evidence that every outfit was deliberately designed as a direct copy. The source material itself describes many of these appearances as recreations, references or modern twists rather than exact duplicates.
The Lasting Fashion Connection
Princess Diana remains one of the most influential style figures associated with the British royal family. Decades after many of her most famous appearances, designers, celebrities and members of the royal family continue to revisit elements of her wardrobe.
For Meghan Markle, those references have appeared across very different stages of her public life. From her early royal appearances in 2018 and 2019 to gala events and casual photographs in 2024 and 2026, Diana’s influence can still be seen in the colors, shapes and styling choices that attract attention around Meghan’s fashion moments.
Whether viewed as intentional tributes or simply examples of how influential Diana’s fashion vocabulary remains, these 11 looks demonstrate one thing clearly: Princess Diana’s style continues to have a remarkable afterlife in modern royal fashion.
