Meghan Markle reads her book The Bench on children's YouTube channel

Meghan Markle appeared on a children's YouTube channel to read her book The Bench.

Appearing on the Brightly Storytime channel, Meghan explained: 'Today I'm going to be read to you my book called The Bench with illustrator Christian Robinson...I asked him to do something special for me and use watercolours, which isn't the normal medium he works in but he did it to make it extra special.

'I wrote this as a poem for my husband and our son Archie, and then turned it into a book so you could enjoy it too.'

Brightly Storytime is run by Penguin Random House, which published The Bench. Prince Harry also has a book deal with the publishing house.

The Duchess of Sussex said she aimed to show 'another side of masculinity' in The Bench, which was inspired by a poem she wrote for Prince Harry on Father's Day, the month after Archie was born, and explores the 'special bond between father and son' as 'seen through a mother's eyes'.

Meghan said in a statement on the Archewell website: 'While this poem began as a love letter to my husband and son, I’m encouraged to see that its universal themes of love, representation and inclusivity are resonating with communities everywhere.

'In many ways, pursuing a more compassionate and equitable world begins with these core values.'