Anecdotal evidence suggests labour can be induced by the lunar cycle and the start of a full moon.

If this is the case for the Duchess of Sussex, the full moon believed to be closest to Meghan’s expected due date is on Friday April 19.

Meghan on Commonwealth Day
Meghan on one of her final public engagements ahead of the birth (Victoria Jones/PA)

April’s full moon is known as the Pink Moon, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.

The name comes not from its colour, but from the pink wildflowers that bloom in the early spring in the US and Canada.

A Pink Moon
A full moon, known as a Pink Moon in the month of April, rising behind the bronze sculpture of an Arctic Tern on the sea front at North Berwick in East Lothian in 2018 (Jane Barlow/PA)

Maternity wards are said to be busier during a full moon, although there is debate in the medical world about whether the moon does encourage women to go into labour.

When the Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to Prince George on July 22 2013, it was the day of a full moon.

Newborn Prince George
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge leave the Lindo Wing with Prince George (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

The Pink Moon is used to fix the date of Easter, which is always the Sunday after the first full moon following the Spring Equinox.

Easter Sunday this year is on April 21, also the Queen’s birthday, so Baby Sussex might even end up sharing a birthday with his or her great-grandmother.

Pink Moon
A ‘Pink Moon’ seen through a cherry blossom tree in Dublin (PA)

Just before Kate was admitted into hospital in 2013, western central London, near where her Kensington Palace apartment is based, experienced isolated heavy rain, thunder and lightning strikes.

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