Mum-of-two who’s a dead ringer for Meghan Markle gets stopped DAILY by people wanting selfies… and it’s changed the way she feels about her looks
A CHARITY worker is being hailed the UK’s top Meghan Markle lookalike after being stopped by hundreds of people who tell her she is a dead ringer for Prince Harry’s bride-to-be.
Mum-of-two Sarah Mhlanga, 35, of Manchester, is constantly asked for selfies and hopes to make a living out of her uncanny resemblance to Ms Markle, 36.
“Since the engagement and non-stop press coverage of Meghan and Harry I am being stopped half a dozen times a day by strangers,” she admitted.
“People in Tescos, mums and dads on the school run, and retirees are all eager to tell me I look like her - or ask me if I am Meghan.
“Even my daughter Mimi Raie (five) and son Josiah (seven) started pointing at magazine covers and telling me that I look like the lady with Prince Harry.
“People come up to me asking me for selfies or just to chat. I realise people ask me to pose with them to try and convince their pals I am Meghan because, as Meghan herself pointed out, royals are not allowed to do selfies.
“I didn’t plan to do lookalike work but I am being inundated with offers from all around the world who want to sign me before the wedding.”
Like Meghan, Sarah is dedicated to charitable causes and works as a youth development worker for the Redeeming Our Communities Charity in Manchester, founded by her mother Debora Green, OBE, 55.
She married fellow charity worker Jabu Mhlanga, 37, in April 2012, wearing a princess cut dress.
Now offers are coming in thick and fast for Sarah, who is a size 8 and 5ft 5in – two inches shy of Meghan - to model bridal dresses, do interviews, appear at events and even pose with Prince Harry lookalikes.
As well as being potentially lucrative (though she intends to donate some of her earnings to her mum’s charity), she said being dubbed Meghan’s doppelganger has changed the way she feels about her looks.
“I used to dislike my nose, I wanted to be blonde and I wasn’t happy with my face,” she admitted.
“I also wore very heavy make-up, but Meghan’s changed all that for me and helped me learn to love myself in a positive way.
“Meghan has such a natural look. She’s also helped me enjoy clothes shopping again. I can shop online and know items will look good because we share the same colouring.
“I can’t afford her designer outfits but I find high street copies.”
Sarah admitted she didn’t know who Meghan was until she and Prince Harry announced their engagement.
“My husband and friends all started telling me I looked like her and I literally had to Google her to see what all the fuss was about,” she said.
“It’s a real honour and something I didn’t expect to happen. It’s so lovely to be compared to someone so beautiful, and my kids and husband are very proud.”
Sarah told how she’s keen to make sure she does her unexpected gift justice.
“I want to sign with the right representative to handle Meghan related work because I consider being a royal lookalike a real honour and a privilege,” Sarah explained.
“I would love to do lookalike work and modelling in the lead-up to the royal wedding, but I want to ensure I do Meghan and the UK proud.
She added: “The Meghan effect is amazing - she has captured people’s hearts.”
Modest Sarah said all the attention has not gone to her head.
“I’m just a regular school run mum-of-two,” she said. “I can promise you I won’t be getting big-headed.”
Sarah, who still hasn’t watched the legal drama Suits that Meghan starred in, is British Caucasian and has olive skin from Spanish connections.
She hopes Meghan and Harry will start a family soon – and joked her two kids will give people an idea of what the royal children might look like.
“My kids are the best thing to ever happen to me, they have grounded me and they are beautiful,” she added.
“I would encourage Meghan and Harry to get pregnant as soon as possible as they will make great parents and have beautiful babies.”
In her spare time, Sarah also enjoys acting and modelling, having started at the age of 15.
“I just did a part in an Australian documentary about a famous murder and I also teach dance and acting to the young people I work with at the charity,” she explained.
Like the US actress, Sarah has a close relationship with her mother.
“My mum is an amazing woman,” she said.
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“I am dedicated to working for my mum’s charity and I know why Meghan enjoys her charity work because it’s been my life for five years.
"I want to become known as the UK's number one Meghan lookalike."
Earlier this week we revealed the things Meghan Markle will be banned from doing when she marries Prince Harry.
We also told you about the one type of food the Royal Family are BANNED from eating when they’re out.