Photo: The Canadian Press

The appearance of Prince Harry's girlfriend over the weekend at the opening ceremonies of the Invictus Games in Toronto continues to be scrutinized by royal watchers, who have commented on everything from how far they sat from each other to where the American actress purchased her outfit.

"This is just part of the fabric of modern-day living for the Royal Family," says Damian Radcliffe, a British media researcher who teaches journalism at the University of Oregon.

"There's always been a huge amount of column inches about nothing much in particular. It's just that now we have a great proliferation of media outlets willing to talk about that, which is why there's so much coverage of this on both sides of the Atlantic."

Meghan Markle, who films the hit legal drama "Suits" in Toronto, cheered on the athletes from around the world Saturday while Harry, who founded the Games in 2014, sat a few rows away next to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. first lady Melania Trump.

By Sunday morning, tabloids such as the Daily Mail were reporting how different Markle's burgundy dress and leather jacket was from the demure outfit Kate Middleton — now the Duchess of Cambridge — wore at her first public outing with Harry's brother and second in line to the throne, Prince William.

Since this year's Invictus Games are taking place where Markle lives and shoots "Suits," there has been intense speculation about if and when the couple will make a public appearance together. They have publicly acknowledged their relationship but have not been seen together, except for long-lens photos taken without their knowledge and from a great distance.

"Everyone is expecting Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to appear together at some point this week," says Chris Ship, Royal Editor for ITV News in the U.K. "The common-held view among the British royal press is that there will be an official outing, their first outing as a couple, as it were."