Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have been married for less than two months, but the Duchess of Sussex appears so comfortable with her new life that she might already be adopting a British accent.
Twitter user Aya El Zeiny posted a video of Meghan, 36, greeting fans during her first major solo engagement with Queen Elizabeth II in Cheshire, England, last month. The resurfaced footage has sparked discussions about a possible shift in the Los Angeles native’s accent.
In the clip, Meghan responds to a compliment about her wedding day by saying, “We all had a great day, I think. The sun was shining for us.” Her speech in the video has led to an international debate over whether she is now speaking with a British accent.
“Meghan Markle speaking with a British accent now is WILDDDDD to me,” tweeted a user named Meg, echoing the sentiments of many others on Twitter. Another user expressed enthusiasm, saying, “I just watched a video that showed Meghan Markle starting to have a British accent and I’m so here for it you have no idea.”
Comparisons were made to Madonna, who adopted a temporary British accent after moving to England with her then-husband Guy Ritchie, and Lindsay Lohan, who famously developed a peculiar European accent after spending a summer in Greece. One Twitter user, Sophia, noted, “New flash of course #Meghan Markle [is] going to start sounding British. [She] is married to Prince Harry. Lindsay Lohan has an accent and she’s just Lindsay Lohan.”
Despite accusations of being ‘phony,’ many defended Meghan, suggesting it’s natural for her to pick up a British accent or at least start to lose her American one. Teri Fikowski commented, “People who are rolling their eyes have likely not moved or stayed long term in another country before. This isn’t that crazy & I doubt it’s phoney [sic].”
Another user, Heather, added, “I don’t understand why it’s a big deal if Meghan Markle develops a British accent. 1. She’s married to one. 2. She’s an actress and has probably taken lessons in accents. And 3. It’s a subconscious form of empathy.”
However, some insisted there was no noticeable difference in Meghan’s speech. Dennis Preston, a regents professor of linguistics at Oklahoma State University, told Yahoo Lifestyle that he didn’t detect a British accent in the video. “I did a very careful listen, paying specific attention to her vowels, a big giveaway with British accents, as well as the intonation. I just didn’t find anything resembling a British accent,” he said.
According to Preston, the brain tells us what to hear, leading people to hear what they expect rather than what is actually there. “She married an Englishman, she lives in England, she’s hanging with the queen, and people think, ‘Gosh, she must be doing something with her language,'” he explained. “It’s your brain playing a trick on you.”
