Before becoming Prince Harry’s wife, Meghan Markle had an interesting online relationship with Matt Cardle, the 2010 winner of the talent show X Factor. Matt beat the popular boy band One Direction to win and sold a million copies of his debut single “When We Collide”.

Honest: Matt Cardle has described exchanging messages with Meghan Markle about going on a date as ‘a very weird situation’ (Meghan pictured in 2019)

In 2015, Matt Cardle, then 32, followed Meghan on social media after he saw her on the TV series “Suits.” Meghan wasn’t left out and started messaging Matt. Meghan is reportedly a fan of Matt’s music and even suggested meeting up.

Although Matt responded to Meghan’s messages, he stopped all communication when he met his ex-girlfriend Amber Hernaman. Matt later shared about the short-lived relationship: “It was a very strange situation and I really don’t know how it happened. Life has a path and I wasn’t on that path. I laugh about it, but it’s amazing to think back on.”

Couple: The singer lives with his girlfriend Amber Hernaman, a project manager for the Royal College of Physicians, in London (pictured in 2016)

In 2019, Matt shed light on the situation during an appearance on the Lorraine TV show and was praised for the way he handled it. Matt said: “It was so petty then and it’s nothing now. Like I said, it was nothing, absolutely nothing. It’s funny how something can be made out of nothing.”

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were introduced in 2016, a year after Matt chatted with her online, and they married in May 2018. Meghan Markle’s representative declined to comment for this story.

Texts: According to The Sun, Matt, 37, swapped messages with Meghan, 39, back in 2015 after she followed him on social media due to his performance in the West End show Memphis

Matt Cardle appeared to have a successful music career after winning the competition and signing a recording contract with Simon Cowell’s Syco label. However, he struggled with drug addiction and was dropped by Simon’s label and his girlfriend at the time.

Over the past decade, Matt has made his mark in West End musicals like “& Juliet,” which he is currently touring. He is now planning a return to the music industry, with a new album expected to be released next year.