Relationships

Prince Harry's Ex Cressida Revealed How The Breakup Changed Her Life

by Candice Jalili
Karwai Tang/WireImage/Getty Images

Ever wondered how your life would change after dating a prince? Well, wonder no more because Prince Harry's ex Cressida Bonas shared how their split changed her life. The topic of the actress' split from Harry came up during a May 30 interview she did with British publication the Daily Telegraph to promote her new show, White House Farm. In the interview, Cressida, who was introduced to Harry by his cousin Princess Eugenie, revealed she finds it "frustrating" that their split left her branded as an "it girl."

(Note to self: My next career move should be dating a prince.)

But on the real, it does seem like the term left Cressida feeling like people don't appreciate the hard work she's put into her acting career. “I think terms like that are very narrow-minded. I think that I work very, very hard, I love what I do, and I just hope that this role has shown people what I can do and what I would like to do going forward and not be caught in a box in any way," she said.

Hopefully this role helps her achieve just that.

Harry and Cressida split in 2014 after having dated for two years. “Cressida had a hard time dealing with the focus of attention being on her all of the time just because she was Prince Harry’s girlfriend — not because she was herself," a source reportedly told People at the time. In the same article, one of her former dance classmates reportedly said, "[Cressida is] really low-key, sweet, and down-to-earth. She didn’t talk about Harry at all. She wasn’t like that.” Honestly, I could see why someone that low-key might not love being called an "it girl."

Luckily, the two reportedly split on "amicable" terms with Cressida even attending Harry's 2018 wedding to Meghan. Here she is looking cool as a cucumber at her ex's nuptials:

WPA Pool/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

Since their split, Cressida told the Daily Telegraph she's come a long way. “I think I have grown confident and fortunately I have learnt not to sweat the small stuff too much,” she shared. "And I just think it has definitely given me a stronger sense of purpose and a stronger sense of what I want or don’t want.”

That "stronger sense of what" she wants may be one of the things that brought toward her current partner Harry Wentworth-Stanley, who runs mental health advocacy organization James' Place. Cressida and her new Harry announced their engagement on Instagram on Aug. 18, 2019.

Like most other people who got engaged around then, their wedding plans have been put on pause. “Unfortunately it has [been delayed]," Cressida told the Daily Telegraph of her wedding. "We are not quite sure what our next move is, but we will have to be postponing the wedding.”

Here's to hoping Cressida is able to continue breaking out of that "it girl" mold!