Australian beauty queen who appeared on Deal or No Deal with Meghan Markle before she was famous reveals what the Duchess was like behind the scenes
- Lisa Gleave from the Gold Coast used to be a ‘briefcase beauty’ on US TV show
- Meghan Markle appears to have worked with the Australian beauty queen
- Ms Gleave has revealed what the duchess, 38, was like behind the scenes
An Australian model who worked alongside Meghan Markle before she was a duchess has lifted the lid on what the duchess was really like.
Lisa Gleave, from the Gold Coast in Queensland, and a younger Meghan used to be ‘briefcase beauties’ on the American version of Deal or No Deal.
A promotional image for season two of the show shows Ms Gleave, a former beauty queen, and Meghan holding briefcases next to each other.
Speaking about Meghan, 38, Ms Gleave said the former princess was ‘quiet but very sweet’
Speaking about Meghan, 38, Ms Gleave said the former princess was ‘quiet but very sweet’ and used the show to boost her acting career.
‘I remember her being very focused on her acting career and her role as a briefcase beauty, as we were called, was just a stepping stone in her career,’ she told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
‘She only did a few seasons and then landed her role in Suits which took her away. I was so happy for her when I heard about the marriage.’
Meghan worked as a ‘briefcase girl’ on Deal or No Deal, hosted by Howie Mandel, for 34 episodes between 2006 and 2007, before earning a leading role as Rachel Zane on Suits.
Lisa Gleave (pictured) from the Gold Coast and the newly crowned Duchess of Sussex used to be briefcase beauties on the American version of Deal or No Deal
Meghan was in charge of briefcase 24 during season two of the show, and when a contestant picked her number, she would then reveal the amount inside the case.
The original briefcase from the show went up for auction last December in Hollywood: A Collector’s Ransom Auction.
In a book written by Andrew Norton, Meghan, A Hollywood Princess, it was revealed that the briefcase girls would start filming at 5.30am and would stand for hours in high heels, after lengthy hair and make-up sittings.
Meghan has spoken briefly about her days on the show. Looking back on her time there, she told Esquire in 2013 that the pretty-girl-with-a-briefcase job was a way to pay the bills.
‘Definitely working on Deal or No Deal was a learning experience, and it helped me to understand what I would rather be doing,’ she said, adding that it was ‘in the category of things I was doing while I was auditioning to try to make ends meet.’
Meghan was on Deal or No Deal alongside Chrissy Teigen, Aubrie Lemon and Leyla Milani.
Meghan Markle (pictured with Prince Harry in October 2018) have asked for a High Court order to stop anyone from naming her five female friends who briefed People magazine
‘I am especially a fan of Meghan,’ Chrissy Teigen told Mail on Sunday last year. ‘I was on Deal or No Deal with her and she was lovely. Now everyone asks me what she was like and I say, “Sorry, no dirt. She’s gorgeous”.’
Meghan married Prince Harry on May 19, 2018, and the couple have since welcomed a baby son, Archie.
Earlier this year, the couple quit their royal duties and said they would separate their time between Britain and America.
In their explosive statement, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said they wanted to ‘carve out a progressive new role’ and ‘step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family’.
They said they wanted to balance their time between the UK and North America, ‘continuing to honour our duty to the Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages’.