Meghan turned heads at the Children's Hospital Los Angeles Gala earlier this month

The Duchess of Sussex stunned at her first solo appearance this month at a children’s hospital gala in Los Angeles – and boldy walked the red carpet in a glitzy low-cut dress

Meghan Markle had heads turning as she dazzled in a glitzy red dress marred by controversy – with insiders claiming the move was her own “version of Diana’s revenge dress” with hints that the Duchess may be “moving on towards a new chapter.”

Meghan, 43, debuted the daring new look at a children’s hospital gala in LA on October 5 as she rubbed shoulders with stars like Demi Lovato, Jamie Lee Curtis and Colin Hanks. The bold number featured a plunging neckline and detachable, billowing overskirt, which Meghan finished off with tousled hair.

But insiders say the dress was worn to send out a particular message, with Meghan drawing inspiration from her late mother-in-law.

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex at the 2024 CHLA Gala in LA

Diana, Princess of Wales, wearing her 'revenge' dress in 1994

A source from California shared with Mail+: “The belief is that this red dress is Meghan’s version of Diana’s revenge dress. Physically this looks like a new Meghan, as if she is moving on towards a new chapter. Some feel it’s no accident.”

Princess Diana famously broke Royal protocol when she stepped out in a revealing off-the-shoulder, short black dress on June 29, 1994, the same day Prince Charles admitted his infidelity. This bold move was seen as part of Diana’s “revenge” couture following the collapse of her marriage to Charles.

Diana had purchased the dress in 1991 and thought it was too risque to wear at the time, but in a historic move, she donned it for the first time at a 1994 dinner at the Serpentine Gallery in Kensington Gardens – coinciding with the night Prince Charles confessed his affair with Camilla Parker-Bowles during a notorious TV interview with Jonathan Dimbleby