Meghan Markle and Prince Harry rejected by local business during Christmas break

MEGHAN MARKLE and Prince Harry are settling in for their first Christmas in California – but they are presumably hoping for more luck than last year when they were rejected by a local business in Canada.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will be hosting a podcast on Spotify, including a holiday special coming out during the festive period. Meghan and Harry said in a statement: “What we love about podcasting is that it reminds all of us to take a moment and to really listen, to connect to one another without distraction.

“With the challenges of 2020, there has never been a more important time to do so, because when we hear each other, and hear each other’s stories, we are reminded of how interconnected we all are.”

The podcast, which was arranged by the couple’s newly formed production company Archewell Audio, will aim to uplift and entertain audiences.

The couple will be looking forward to their podcast debut around Christmas, as well as celebrating with their one-year-old son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.

Last year, the couple spent Christmas in Canada away from the pressures of royal life, and reemerged afterwards with their plan to step down as senior royals.

They said in a statement that they were “enjoying sharing the warmth of the Canadian people with the beauty of the landscape”.

Unfortunately, they were rejected by a local resident, who turned down the couple’s request to eat at his restaurant, due to the hassle of the security that comes with hosting royals.

Deep Cove Chalet, an upmarket seafood eatery in North Saanich, Vancouver Island, is run by husband and wife Bev and Pierre Koffel.

Harry and Meghan’s security identified their place as a potential dining spot around this time last year.

However, Mrs Koffel told the Vancouver Sun her chef husband turned down the couple’s request over the phone.

She said security guards came to the restaurant and spoke to her ahead of time.

The restaurant-owner revealed: “They said, ‘How did you figure out who we were?’ And I said ‘It wasn’t too hard’.”

However, her husband was the one who answered the phone when the royals wanted to make a reservation and he turned them down due to the security required.

She said to the local paper: “You know what Pierre’s like. We’ll see what happens.”

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