Prince Harry has found the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with and would like to pop the question to Meghan Markle before his birthday in the autumn, friends of the young royal have revealed.

Despite their busy schedules, the US soap actress and the Prince have a pact never to go longer than a month apart and speak using FaceTime on their smartphones twice a day when they are separated.

Miss Markle has made herself at home in Nottingham Cottage, Harry’s Kensington Palace quarters and is so comfortable she keeps a wardrobe of clothes and a shelf of organic cookbooks in the kitchen, according to friends.

The Mail on Sunday will publish a 24-page colour magazine to mark the first anniversary of the couple’s relationship this weekend

Prince Harry has found the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with and would like to pop the question to Meghan Markle before his birthday in the autumn

Miss Markle has made herself at home in Nottingham Cottage, Harry’s Kensington Palace quarters (pictured walking down Kensington High Street in November)

The latest confirmation of the strength and seriousness of their relationship - and suggestions they may be moving it onto a more formal basis within months - are revealed in The Mail on Sunday’s 24-page colour magazine to mark the first anniversary of the couple’s relationship this weekend.

‘Harry has found the girl he wants to spend the rest of his life with,’ one of his friends reveals. ‘He is fuelling all the talk about the future.’

Miss Markle, 35, is said to be so familiar to the gatekeepers and police patrolling the area that she doesn’t need a security pass.

‘There’s no question they are madly in love,’ said another friend.

‘Harry is really happy, and from seeing them together I’d say it’s just a question of when, not if, he’s going to ask her to marry him.’

She reportedly tried on an Augusta Jones dress with lace sleeves (left), priced at £2,195. A £2,550 midriff-baring gown made by Paloma Blanca (right), was her reported favorite - but she joked it wouldn't work for a royal wedding

Harry (pictured in Leeds on Friday) would like to propose before his 33rd birthday on September 15, according to sources close to the Prince

Miss Markle, 35, is said to be so familiar to the gatekeepers and police patrolling the area around Kensington Palace that she doesn’t need a security pass

Harry would like to propose before his 33rd birthday on September 15, according to sources close to the Prince. If he does, the Invictus Games in Toronto a week later would be the perfect platform to introduce his new fiancée to the world.

As for the wedding, Harry wouldn’t have such a say in the timing. As fifth in line to the throne, he would have to ask his grandmother The Queen to avoid clashes with other dates in the Royal calendar.

Our brilliant pull-out include stunning photographs of Meghan and gives a unique insight into her childhood, her first marriage and her work as a UN Women’s Advocate.