She may not have been at Buckingham Palace, but Meghan Markle still made a royal entrance at a glitzy bash in New York City Tuesday night – with husband Prince Harry by her side.
The Duchess of Sussex, 41, showed a bit more skin than usual in a quilted gold Johanna Ortiz dress that originally retailed for $1,850, but is unsurprisingly now sold out.
The strapless style — called the Ideal Universe midi — features a small diamond cutout and knee-length slit.
She accessorized with gold padlocked Tom Ford stilettos ($1,350), a yellow Carolina Herrera clutch and sparkly J.Crew hoop earrings.
Markle kept her makeup simple, with her hair swept to one side and styled in loose waves.
Meanwhile, Harry, 38, sported a navy suit with a light blue tie as he walked in with Markle’s mother, Doria Ragland.
Markle was the guest of honor at the event, receiving the Women of Vision Award from Gloria Steinem, legendary feminist and Ms. Foundation for Women co-founder.
Steinem, 89, presented Markle the award for “her global advocacy to empower and advocate on behalf of women and girls” in honor of the nation’s oldest women’s foundation celebrating its 50th anniversary.
In her acceptance speech, Markle encouraged women to find inspiration to fight for equity.
“It’s never too late to start,” Markle said. “You can be the visionary of your own life… There is still so much work to be done.”
She also recalled how growing up, Ms. Magazine was always in her house.
“I am a woman who remains inspired and driven by this organization,” she said.
“It allowed me to recognize that part of my greater value and purpose in life was to advocate for those who felt unheard, to stand up to injustice, and to not be afraid of saying what is true and what is just and what is right.”
The evening marked Markle’s first public event since she skipped the coronation of her father-in-law, King Charles III, earlier this month.
Sources told us at the time that it would be “inauthentic” of her to fly over amid the royal family rift.
Meanwhile, Harry attended the ceremony at Westminster Abbey in London and then rushed back to California hours later to celebrate their son Archie’s 4th birthday.
As for Markle’s connection to Steinem, the pals are believed to have met through the PR firm they shared.
They also united in 2020 to “cold call” voters ahead of the election.
“She came home to vote. The first thing we did, and why she came to see me, was we sat at the dining room table where I am right now and we cold-called voters,” Steinem later told Access Hollywood.
“She said, ‘Hello I’m Meg,’ and ‘Hello I’m Gloria,’ and ‘Are you going to vote?’ That was her initiative.”
Steinem described Markle, who she simply calls “Meg,” as “smart, authentic, funny, political.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex flew into NYC earlier this week and made a splash as they arrived at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in Manhattan Monday evening.
They also visited youth group AHA! Santa Barbara in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month.
One night prior, they had a pre-trip sushi date in Montecito, Calif., with Gwyneth Paltrow, Brad Falchuk, Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden, among others.
The last time the Sussexes were in NYC was in December 2022, when they were honored at the Ripple of Hope gala.
Other honorees included the co-founder of Black Voters Matter, LaTosha Brown, as well as Wanda Irving, who co-founded a non-profit to alleviate black maternal health disparities after her daughter, Dr. Shalon Irving, died from preventable pregnancy complications in 2017.
Also being celebrated for their work were Kimberly Inez McGuire, executive director of Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, abortion rights activist Olivia Julianna, and 16-year-old author and LGBTQ+ inclusion activist Rebekah Bruesehoff.
With Post wires
