Meghan has secretly filmed a role on a very popular Aussie series during her whirlwind tour Down Under.
Sources have told news.com.au that the Duchess of Sussex, who launched her lifestyle brand As Ever last year in conjunction with her Netflix series, With Love, Meghan, has filmed a special guest role on MasterChef Australia during a gap in her and Harry’s jam-packed itinerary.
The couple flew into Melbourne early Tuesday morning and are due to head back to LA from Sydney after wrapping up their activities at the end of the week.
Shortly after news.com.au broke the news, Meghan’s publicist confirmed she had appeared as a guest judge.
“As part of her first Australian visit since 2018, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, featured as a guest judge on the country’s most beloved cooking show,” the statement read.
“Meghan mentored and guided our nation’s top home cooks alongside MasterChef Australia judges Poh Ling Yeow, Sofia Levin and Jean-Christophe Novelli.”
Production of Ten’s beloved cooking series, featuring judges Andy Allen, Poh Ling Yeow, Sofia Levin and Jean-Christophe Novelli, is based in Melbourne.
Season 18 is set to premiere this Sunday night and – alongside Meghan – will see the likes of stars including Robert Irwin and Jimmy Barnes make their MasterChef debut.
It was previously confirmed that Harry and Meghan’s Aussie visit, which was broken exclusively by news.com.au last month, would feature paid speaking appearances for each of them, as well as a series of philanthropic and charity engagements.
The Duke of Sussex will be speaking on workplace mental health at the InterEdge Summit in Melbourne on Thursday and Meghan will take part in a Q&A with podcast host Gemma O’Neill at the Her Best Life wellness retreat in Sydney later this week.
Meghan’s MasterChef appearance neatly ties in with the launch of her career as a lifestyle guru, and comes off the back of the release of two seasons of her series With Love, Meghan on Netflix.
It’s understood the series has not been commissioned for a third season.
It’s been widely suggested that her visit to Australia also coincides with plans to expand As Ever into the local market – a claim recently bolstered by the discovery of her successful trademark applications across a range or categories, including “yoga straps, “pet feeding mats” and a range of beverages, food products, cosmetics and fragrances.
The mother-of-two wouldn’t be the the first royal to pop up on MasterChef; in 2018, during their Australian tour, then-Prince Charles and Camilla visited the set in Darwin, where they were filmed meeting the season 10 contestants, who were tasked with catering a reception at the Royal Flying Doctor Service base.
At the time, then-MasterChef judge Gary Mehigan revealed it was Camilla who had gotten the royals’ cameo over the line, as she was a “massive MasterChef fan”.
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