Duke and Duchess of Sussex 'happy in US and Lili is teething', Meghan tells Ellen DeGeneres
The Duchess of Sussex has said she and the Duke of Sussex are “happy” in California as she spoke about daughter Lilibet’s teething troubles in a television interview with Ellen DeGeneres.
Meghan is appearing on The Ellen Show on Thursday – eight months after the former Suits star’s controversial sit-down with Oprah Winfrey which left the royal family in crisis.
DeGeneres, a friend of the couple who lives near them in the celebrity enclave of Montecito, asked what Harry loves about California.
The duchess replied: “We’re just happy.”
DeGeneres said of the Sussexes’ five-month-old daughter: “Lili’s now teething.”
Meghan put her hands to her mouth, saying: “Anything to relieve that.”
The talk show host quipped: “Tequila, anything,” People magazine has reported.
Meghan replied: “That’s Auntie Ellen for you.”
The show’s Ellentube.com website said: “The activist and co-founder of Archewell will chat with Ellen about growing up and returning to California, as well as her New York Times bestselling children’s book The Bench.”
The interview comes the week after Meghan apologised to the Court of Appeal for forgetting she authorised an aide to brief the authors of the controversial Finding Freedom biography about her and Harry.
The appeal by the publisher of The Mail On Sunday, Associated Newspapers Limited, over the privacy case surrounding a letter the duchess wrote to her estranged father, also heard how in text messages Meghan chose to address Thomas Markle as “Daddy” because it “would pull at the heart strings” if the letter was leaked.
DeGeneres first met Meghan by chance at an animal shelter some years ago and encouraged her to adopt her first dog, Bogart.
She has previously described the Sussexes as “the cutest couple, so down to earth” and defended them when they faced criticism after taking a series of flights on private jets.
After meeting the Sussexes’ son in 2019, DeGeneres said: “I mean I can’t tell you how sweet they are. But the most important thing is I got to hold Archie. I fed Archie. I held Archie.”
Eighth in line to the throne, Lilibet, who the couple have so far not released public pictures of, was born in the US in June.
She was named after the family nickname used for the Queen, but has yet to meet her great-grandmother or grandfather, the Prince of Wales, in person.
Meghan and Harry accused an unnamed member of the royal family of racism during their bombshell chat with Winfrey.
In the trailer for The Ellen Show, the duchess chatted about how she used to drive to the same Warner Brothers site for auditions.
Meghan added: “To drive in today was very different.”
She said she would drive her “very, very old” Ford Explorer Sport to the studios but the key had stopped working in the driver’s side door.
“I would open the trunk and climb in and then pull it shut behind me and crawl over all my seats to get out, that’s how I would come to and fro,” the duchess said.
Asked by DeGeneres if anyone saw her, Meghan replied: “No, I would play it off. I go like, ‘Oh, I’m just looking for my resume and my highlighters or my script’.”
DeGeneres wrote on Twitter: “A lot has changed since the last time Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, was on the Warner Brothers lot. Don’t miss the rest of our interview tomorrow.”
Comedian and actress DeGeneres announced in May she was stepping down from her eponymous TV show after the 19th series.
She said the decision to end her show, which finishes in spring 2022, was not the result of allegations of a toxic workplace environment.
She apologised to staff in 2020 after an internal review by Warner Bros found “deficiencies related to the show’s day-to-day management”.
Meghan was accused of bullying in March, with The Times reporting the duchess allegedly drove out two personal assistants and “humiliated” staff on several occasions, which she denies.
Buckingham Palace has tasked an external legal team to assist its human resources team in an investigation into the claims.