Meghan Markle chats to First Lady of Canada Sophie Trudeau in new Spotify Archetypes podcast

Meghan Markle today revealed she studied for the UK’s citizenship test after meeting Prince Harry, who she claims had ‘no idea’ about some of the answers when she asked him for help because it was ‘so hard’.

The Duchess of Sussex’s star guest on her new Spotify podcast is First Lady of Canada Sophie Trudeau. The friends spoke about the challenges of parenting and being a partner to two famous men in an episode called: ‘Good Wife/Bad Wife, Good Mom/Bad Mom’. 

But Meghan also chatted to comedian Pamela Adlon, best known as the voice of Bobby Hill in the animated comedy series King of the Hill, who became a British citizen in 2020.

Meghan then revealed that she prepared for the ‘Life in the UK’ test ‘a couple of years ago’, although LA born and based Ms Markle is not believed to be a British Citizen, having reportedly ‘abandoned’ the idea after Megxit.  Experts said that she did not live in the UK for the three years required to get spousal citizenship after marrying Harry in 2018.

She said: ‘That citizenship exam is so hard. I was studying for it [the test] and I remember going: “Oh my goodness”. I would ask my husband: “Did you know this? Did you know this?”  And he would say: “I had no idea”. But she did not expand on whether she ever took the test – or just studied for it. 

According to the explosive biography Finding Freedom, when she began dating Harry in 2016, Meghan was urged to take advice from Sophie Trudeau by her friend Jessica Mulroney, who deemed the two women ‘now had a lot in common’ because of their famous husbands. 

They would become close pals and confidants with Justin Trudeau urging his country to welcome the Sussexes after they emigrated from the UK in 2020.

Meghan has revealed she took the UK Citizenship Test – and Harry strruggled with some of the answers – but it has long been reported that she did not end up taking British citizenship

Meghan Markle’s star guest on her new Spotify podcast is First Lady of Canada Sophie Trudeau. Pictured together in a photo booth in 2016

Sophie Trudeau attended the funeral of the Queen with her husband, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, on September 19, pictured. Meghan described her as a friend 

Introducing her friend Mrs Trudeau, Meghan calls he a ‘humanitarian mother’ who she met in Toronto at the city’s fashion week around seven years ago, when she was starring in Suits.

She said: ‘Sophie has become a dear friend and someone who I think is so emblematic of strength that comes from embracing your humanity, even in the face of all these family and home and public pressures, keeping that sense of self while holding up the mantle of what comes with being a parent and a spouse, that’s a full plate’.

Ms Markle and Canada’s First Lady became friends when Meghan was filming Suits. The Duchess of Sussex became part of Toronto’s ‘platinum elite’, which also included their mutual friend Jessica Mulroney.

They posed together cheek-to-cheek on a Toronto rooftop bar in 2016 at the exclusive Soho House.   And it was Mrs Trudeau’s husband, who has been Canada’s PM since 2015, who urged his country to welcome the Sussexes after they emigrated from the UK. They would later move to LA.

Opening the podcast, Meghan describes a day of laughter and fun at her Montecito mansion with Mrs Trudeau. Their children played in the swimming pool on pizza-shaped floats while they drank wine ‘on the terrace’ and were ‘giddy like absolute schoolgirls.’

Meghan said: ‘This wasn’t our day of being the wives and moms, all perfectly quaffed with updos and pearls and demure smiles.

‘This was the other version of us both with wild curly hair and swimsuits and loose linen and huge belly laughs. Big cuddles with our little ones, quiet whispers of girl talk on the terrace, giddy like absolute schoolgirls. We were just having so much fun.’

The Duke, 35, and Duchess of Sussex, 39, bought the sprawling nine-bedroom and 16-bathroom mansion (pictured) in upscale Montecito, Santa Barbara, for $14.65million. It appears they and the Trudeaus enjoyed some recent pool time when the two mothers were ‘giddy like schoolgirls’

Meghan went on to reveal she was talking about an event with Sophie, whom she has known for a number of years before joining the royal family.

Elsewhere, she described how she had ‘gone to Sophie for advice’ over the years, after meeting ‘seven years ago.’  

According to Finding Freedom, Meghan became friendly with the First Lady in 2016. 

Meghan had previously met her husband Justin Trudeau at the One Young World summit in Ottawa that year, with the pair pictured deep in conversation.

‘Sophie had given up a career in television, where she had been working as a correspondent on CTV’s eTalk, to take on a more formal role alongside her husband as he hit the campaign trail,’ the authors claim.

‘The pair became fast email friends, Meghan was interested to hear how Sophie had successfully made the move from an entertainment news correspondent to much-beloved First Lady, all while skillfully dodging controversy.’

A close friend of Trudeau and a former cabinet member told Scobie and Durand: ‘Sophie would have made it clear that every single aspect of Meghan’s past would be dug up, so the most important thing was to be honest with Harry—tell him everything.

‘Sophie’s a smart woman and the perfect brain for Meghan to pick. She knows how difficult something like this is. Few people can relate or truly sympathise. For those of us that knew about their friendship, it was amazing to see the change in Meghan that followed.’

Earlier that year Meghan and Sophie were pictured in a series of photobooth images with Jessica taken at the Canadian Arts & Fashion Awards (CAFA) at Soho House in Toronto – where Meghan lived while filming Suits.

Back in January 2020 there was speculation that Justin Trudeau may have given a cryptic Twitter clue about Meghan and Harry’s departure from the Royal Family.   

Diplomatic sources claimed Mr Trudeau and his wife Sophie were consulted about the decision late last year, before members of the Royal Family and even the Queen.

Prince Harry and Mr Trudeau have always looked to enjoy each other’s company at events such as Commonwealth commemorations. The two have also encountered each other on multiple occasions through Harry’s Invictus Games for disabled servicemen.

Meghan also shared a glimpse of her morning routine on her podcast Archetypes. 

Speaking to her guest, American actress Pamela Adlon, the Duchess of Sussex, 41, revealed what mornings are like for her and Prince Harry in their Montecito home. 

Describing her ‘morning rush,’ Meghan revealed how she and Prince Harry start the day by looking after their children, Archie, three and Lilibet, one.  

Speaking to her guest First Lady of Canada Sophie Trudeau, whom she describes as a close friend, the Duchess of Sussex, 41, revealed what mornings where like for her and Prince Harry in their Montecito home, where they care for their son Archie, three and daughter Lilibet, who is 17-months old  

Meghan descried her morning routine as a ‘whirlwind’ but said making breakfast for her family is ‘important’ to her and the best way to start the day 

‘So the morning rush I’m sure it’ll only get more chaotic as they get older,’ Meghan said. 

‘But for me, it’s, you know, both monitors on for the kids to hear them, always up with Lily, get her downstairs, then a half hour later Archie’s up,’ she said. 

She went on to say she ‘start[s] doing his lunch box right before he’s up while I have her, getting her a little nibble, my husband’s help me get him downstairs. I make breakfast for all three of them. It’s very important to me. I love doing it.

‘For me it’s just feels like the greatest way to start the morning,’ she added, as Sophie cooed it was ‘so sweet’.

After breakfast, the mother-of-two moves to feed the family’s dogs, and revealed Harry and her recently got a third pet.

‘And then it’s like feed all three of the dogs – because we just got another dog – and then it’s get Archie out the door for school and, you know, but it does, it feels like a whirlwind,’ she said.

Pamela then said she hopes Prince Harry contributes to this demanding morning routine and ‘kid time.’

‘Also, I hope dad is being a good contributor to like the time the kid time,’ she said.  

To which Meghan replied ‘Oh my husband? He’s great.’