First there was Madonna, then there was Lindsay Lohan. And now, after just a few months of living in London,
Meghan Markle is the latest American-born celebrity to start speaking with a seemingly new accent.
A viral Twitter video from Meghan’s June visit to Chester seems to show that the
Duchess of Sussex has picked up a slight
British Accent and lilt. Some listeners aren’t totally convinced she has a different accent altogether, pointing out that it seems like simply a change in her inflection, as if she’s adopted an English person’s cadence.
See if you can hear it in the clip below, especially when the 36-year-old says things like “Thank you, I appreciate that,” “Yes we all had a great day, I think” and “The sun was shining for us ― oh, very lucky all around.”
Meghan’s speech habits previously caused a slight controversy during her appearance in Edinburgh in February. A fan thought they could hear a change in the duchess’ accent when she said the word “scone,” which she pronounced to rhyme with “gone.” When Americans say “scone,” they typically pronounce it in a way that it rhymes with “bone.”
Considering the LA-born and raised former actress now lives in London full-time and mostly interacts with British people, the new lilt isn’t too surprising.
Voice, speech and dialect coach Patricia Fletcher told HuffPost why someone like the “Suits” star ― or anyone else in her position ― would pick up on the speech patterns of those around her.
“Meghan Markle strikes me as someone who is very attentive and someone who has a lot of empathy for others,” she said in an email.
“If she also has a good ear for music, rhythm and inflection and is now surrounded by British English speakers (especially people she loves) it would not surprise me if her sounds might adjust a bit―perhaps even unconsciously,” Fletcher added.
We’ll have to keep an eye ― er, ear ― out for her next appearance.