Royal Family

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry finally scraped together enough dough to pay their deposit and lock in a wedding date.

The palace announced Friday the couple will do the damn thing on May 19. That's one week earlier than a British tabloid had reported it would be, and means they will NOT tie the knot on a 3-day weekend. Bummer for their guests.

Nothing particularly special about the date in British royal history, anyway.

It is, however, the birth date of Malcolm X, Ho Chi Minh and Kim Zolciak. Sooo ... there's that.

The Royal family was among more than 1,000 guests who packed St. Paul's Cathedral to remember victims of the catastrophic Grenfell Tower fire.

Prince Harry, Kate Middleton, Prince William, Camilla Parker Bowles and Prince Charles took part in Thursday's hour-long national memorial in London. The remembrance comes 6 months after 71 people died in the apartment building fire ... which also left hundreds homeless.

Adele was also there clutching a white rose to honor victims -- along with Carey Mulligan and her hubby, Mumford & Sons frontman Marcus Mumford.

Prince William and Prince Harry were royal guests on the red carpet of Europe's premiere of "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" ... and the force looks very strong with these 2.

The princes suited up for the London event Tuesday night and cruised past a line of Stormtroopers before being greeted by one of the film's stars -- BB-8.

The Royal bros are more than just your typical 'Star Wars' fans, too ... they actually filmed cameos for the movie last year. Word is, they play Stormtroopers who appear alongside Tom Hardy's character while guarding John Boyega's character, Finn.

So keep a lookout for a couple 'troopers who look just a tad out of place.

To say Meghan Markle is trading up is a gross understatement.

This is the place Meghan called home while filming "Suits" in Toronto. The house is perfectly nice, but it doesn't compare to her new digs, although the square footage of the cottage she and Harry will be calling home is roughly the same.

Meghan was renting and the house is now up for sale for just under $1.4 million.

Prince Harry frequently visited Meghan and stayed with her in the house. We don't know if the seller is asking for a premium given that it has tinges of royalty, but that wouldn't be wholly surprising.

There was an open house Saturday and tons of lookiloos came by. There's a sign posted warning "No photography or video."

Meghan Markle is going full Karate Kid ahead of her Royal nuptials -- because she's hired Michael Jackson's former bodyguard to learn how to defend herself ... TMZ has learend.

Our Royal sources tell us Meghan has hired celeb security adviser and trainer Matt Fiddes to teach her martial arts and self-defense -- as well as to get her in shape ahead of her wedding with Prince Harry in May.

Meghan just landed back in L.A. Wednesday to spend time with her mom ahead of the holidays -- and we're told Matt booked a last-minute flight to Hollywood this week, so the training could begin STAT.

Matt's a natural fit for Meghan. He owns one of the biggest martial arts franchises in the world -- Matt Fiddes Martial Arts -- and works with tons of celebs, including Tom Cruise.

He's also got close ties with the Royal Family -- MJ was tight with Princess Diana, and he became part of her inner circle. Plus ... he's a Brit, so he'll be geographically desirable.

We're told Meghan's endgame is not about fitness -- sources close to Matt tell us Meghan hired him specifically to learn self-defense. Sounds like she's supplementing her hostage training.

Hi-ya!

Meghan Markle is about to get a crash course on being a royal -- from knowing the rules of curtsying to handling herself at State events -- and we've learned her teacher is her fiance, Harry.

Meghan has a million things to learn, according to royal expert Katie Nicholl. Just a few examples, she has to know the curtsy rules ... she has to bend for the Queen, Kate, Beatrice, Eugenie and others. She needs to know how to address dignitaries, and the rules of royal fashion. She needs to know how to handle herself at State dinners. She also has to learn royal etiquette at the table ... how to hold conversations, and on and on.

Harry knows the drill because he's been around it since birth, so he's the perfect mentor.

There are silly little no-no's Meghan needs to understand. We're told one thing that she'll have to lose is her love of selfies with fans. It's just not done.

Diana ran afoul of the rules early on when she wore a revealing black gown for an event with Princess Grace. In royal-dom, all black outfits are reserved for funerals and mourning.

And get this ... we're told Harry started giving Meghan royal homework months ago, which means he knew she was a keeper.

We're guessing Meghan will have a few books on her nightstand, like Katie Nicholl's upcoming book, "Harry: Love, Life, Loss."

It's a learning process for sure, but she has to have everything down pat by May 26 ... when she and Harry get hitched.

Meghan Markle said last Friday, "We're not allowed to do selfies" ... saying it's a Royal thing, but we did some checking and looks like she needs to update her Royal etiquette pamphlet.

Turns out her fiance, Prince Harry, is in the selfie game, so we're not sure why Meghan is so camera shy.

Harry's not alone ... Kate Middleton also got in the act, and even the Queen mugged for a shot, but it looks like she's kind of in the dark ... it's a technology thing.

As we reported, Harry is going to teach Meghan the Royal ropes, but scratch the selfie thing from the list of no-nos.

Meghan Markle's gonna get trained on how to escape being held hostage ... and it'll be focused on alerting and escaping.

After marrying Prince Harry -- who's a trained combat vet himself -- Meghan will undergo military training from the British Special Air Service on how to deal with a hostage situation -- S.O.P. for Royal newbies.

Meghan's hostage training will last about a week, and it will teach her techniques on how to transmit a distress signal that she's being held against her will if her captors make her record a video ... this according to Scott Jones, director of the London-based security firm Garvian.

Meghan's training will include mastering micro-expressions, key words and other signals to let either her family or law enforcement know if she's under duress from captors. We're also told she'll get some basic psychology training on dealing with her captors.

She'll also be taught how to get out of restraints ... like duct tape or zip ties.

Another source who served in the British Armed Forces tells us Meghan's hostage training will be primarily geared toward facilitating a rescue, and would probably not include combat or weapons training.

BTW ... Meghan is following in the footsteps of her princess predecessors like Diana and Kate. Both of them underwent similar training after joining the Royal Family. They both did it at a Special Air Service base in Hereford ... so it'd make sense for Meghan to go there as well.

Good luck.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are clearly in love and ready for the altar ... but there's a reality about marriage as Prince Charles will say -- sometimes it doesn't work out, and when that happens money becomes an issue.

We have the lowdown on the money Harry and Meghan get while they're married, and what each might get if it doesn't work out.

-- Harry is currently worth $40 million.

-- Harry gets income, along with William and Kate, from Charles' private estate, which generates around $27 million a year. Harry, William and Kate split $4.4 million from the estate in 2016.

-- Meghan comes into the marriage with $5 million

International divorce lawyer Jeremy D. Morley tells us England recognizes prenups, and although they can influence a judge they are not binding. Charles and William did not have prenups.

Now get this ... in terms of dividing assets in the event of divorce, it's not just what the couple makes during the marriage. What both spouses bring into the marriage is fair game. So Harry's $40 mil and Meghan's $5 mil go into the pot to divide up in the event the marriage doesn't last.

Our Royal sources tell us Charles paid Diana around $23 million when they divorced and that basically cleaned him out.

Photos of Meghan Markle striking some sexy poses raise one very important question -- what the hell took Prince Harry so long to propose???

Megs posed for the photo shoot back in 2013 for a Canadian magazine called Sharp. She was already starring in "Suits" by that time, but thank God the photographer did not take a literal approach to the theme of this shoot.

Ya gotta admit, it's kinda interesting to see someone who's about to be a member of the prim and proper British royal family posing like this. And, seeing as how Harry met Meghan in the summer of 2016 ... he probably would've seen these if he did some Internet research.

So, again we ask ... what took ya so long, Harry?

This seems to run in the fam. You'll recall -- and if you don't we're about to remind you -- Kate Middleton was walking in a fashion show when Prince William first laid eyes on her.

Well played, Princes.

Meghan Markle won't have to wait to become a Brit before she gets to use a royal title ... that is, if Queen Elizabeth is game.

TMZ broke the story, Kensington Palace told us Meghan won't be cut a break to become a British citizen. She'll have to wait up to 5 years, like everyone else. That said, it calls into question whether she can become a princess or a duchess during the time she's a lady in waiting to become a Brit.

Our rusty trusty Buckingham Palace sources tell TMZ ... Meghan's citizenship won't be a buzzkill for her becoming a true Royal. We're told the Queen has the power to bestow a title on Meghan, even before she becomes officially British.

If the Queen makes Meghan an HRH, it will be the first time an non-Brit gets the title.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are fresh off announcing their engagement but already in full swing with their royal duties ... shaking hands and probably kissing babies.

The newly-engaged couple visited Nottingham Friday and greeted a throng of adoring fans. The couple was there to raise HIV/AIDS and youth crime awareness. They later hit up the elegant Contemporary, which hosted the Terrence Higgins Trust World AIDS Day charity fair.

Check it out ... Harry and Meghan certainly are movers and shakers and play the royal couple part flawlessly.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be saying their "I dos" at Windsor Castle on live TV for the whole world to see ... just like his brother, William, and sister-in-law, Kate Middleton.

Harry and Meghan's wedding is still in the early planning stages, but our Kensington Palace contact tells us they'll allow cameras in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle to make it available on the tele.

We're told it will be a pool camera, meaning all media outlets can plug in and run the wedding on broadcast and cable TV as well as all digital platforms.

Here's the contest. Around 23 million Americans and 27 million Brits tuned in to Kate and William's wedding back in 2011. Our guess ... Harry and Meghan will beat that, especially in America because she's one of US.

If you want to set your DVR, there are reports that the wedding will go down May 26 during Memorial Day weekend. The precise date will be revealed next week.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are giving friends and family an extra day to recover from their wedding because they're reportedly tying the knot over Memorial Day Weekend.

The wedding date is set for Saturday, May 26 ... according to one British tabloid. That would work out perfectly not only for their American guests, but also the Brits. That Monday is a Bank Holiday in the UK.

As we reported, they're getting hitched at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle outside of London.

If you're a Royal fam fan ... plan your holiday accordingly.

No doubt it's good to be the Prince's fiancée, but Meghan Markle still won't get special treatment when it comes to becoming a citizen in the United Kingdom ... TMZ has learned.

Prince Harry's betrothed announced she intends to apply to be a legal Brit -- a process that can take up to 5 years for commoners. You'd think Meghan could get on some kinda Royal fam fast track, but Kensington Palace tells us no dice.

Official word is Meghan will have to go through the process like any "normal" subject of the crown.

Don't panic ... this won't delay the wedding, but here's how it could have an impact. Presumably, Queen Elizabeth will bestow a title on Harry and Meghan on their wedding day -- just like William and Kate got on theirs. It's still unclear if Meghan would be allowed to use her title before she's a UK citizen.

Prince William's now reduced to running errands for the other future King of England, although it's a very important one -- delivering Prince George's Christmas list to Jolly Ol' St. Nick!

Wills hit up Santa Thursday in Helsinki, Finland -- not too far from his North Pole HQ -- and handed him a very short list for the 4-year-old prince. It's a little hard to make out, but looks like all lil Geo wants is a police car.

It's unclear if he means a toy car, or the real deal.

One things's for sure. This look on Santa's face screams ... Can't YOU handle this one on your own, PRINCE?!!