Ever heard the one about the famous pop star walking into a bar with a former Prime Minister?
You’d be forgiven for thinking it’s the punchline to a joke, but on Tuesday night in the heart of Montreal it really happened – and there’s video to prove it.
Indeed, singer and sometime astronaut Katy Perry left staff-members at upscale restaurant Le Violon speechless after arriving in the company of their former Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau.
Perry, recently single following an abrupt separation from fiancé Orlando Bloom in June, was filmed enjoying a relaxed and apparently uninhibited conversation with Trudeau, 53, over a two hour dinner date at the fine dining eatery.
And there would have been no shortage of things to talk about given their colourful careers, their shared history of occasionally controversial headlines, inappropriate gaffes and – of late – an alarmingly similar decline in popularity.
Perry, 40, may well have wanted to talk about her recent journey into space aboard the Blue Origin NS-31 rocket, an 11-minute flight that whisked the singer and her all-female crew some 62 miles about the Earth.
Katy Perry and former Canadian Prime Minister stunned onlookers at an upscale restaurant in Quebec on Tuesday evening after they were seen enjoying a two-hour dinner date (pictured)
Perry confirmed her separation from actor fiancé Orlando Bloom in June, while Trudeau and wife Sophie announced they were parting ways after 18-years of marriage in 2023
She might have been less keen to elaborate on the public fallout that ensued, with Perry and her well-heeled fellow space-wanderers subsequently accused of participating in a completely pointless vanity project.
The singer no doubt had good intentions when she claimed to be putting the ‘ass’ into astronaut and pulled on her jumpsuit before joining the likes of TV presenter Gayle King, film producer Kerianne Flynn, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen and Lauren Sanchez – the wife of billionaire Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos – aboard the controversial capsule.
It would transpire to be the first all-female space flight since Russian astronaut Valentina Tereshkova’s solo trip in 1963, but any historical relevance was quickly lost within hours of their return to Earth as a bemused general public rounded on the beleaguered crew.
Perry didn’t exactly help her cause by skipping from the capsule holding a daisy to the sky – an apparent reference to young daughter Daisy Dove, whom she shares with Bloom – before dropping to her knees and kissing the ground.
‘It’s not about singing my songs,’ she said breathlessly after greeting the media. ‘It’s about a collective energy in there. It’s about us. It’s about making space for future women and taking up space and belonging.’
Maybe, maybe not, but it was no coincidence that Blue Origin happened to be owned by Bezos, with many critics dismissing the 11-minute flight as ‘Amazon PR.’
Others accused the celebrity astronauts of ‘gluttonous’ and ‘planet destroying’ behaviour, while questioning what the costly trip even contributed to society.
An inside source called the criticism unexpected for the former American Idol judge and ‘disheartening’ for the rest of the all-female crew.
Perry may well have wanted to talk about her recent journey to space aboard the Blue Origin NS-31 rocket, an 11-minute flight that whisked the singer some 62 miles about the Earth
The six-person crew includes Jeff Bezos’ fiancé Lauren Sánchez, pop star Katy Perry, CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King, film producer Kerianne Flynn, activist Amanda Nguyen, and former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe
‘Katy doesn’t regret going to space. It was life changing. What she does regret is making a public spectacle out of it,’ the insider exclusively revealed to Daily Mail.
Perry recently split from longtime partner Bloom and is currently on tour, with stops including Ottawa on Tuesday, Montreal on Wednesday, Quebec City on Friday, and two dates in Toronto next week.
With that in mind, Trudeau would be the perfect sounding board for Perry to discuss her latest album, 143, released last September, and her future plans as a recording artist.
She’d be forgiven, of course, for omitting the disastrous reviews it received upon release and the savaging she was forced to take for collaborating with controversial producer Dr. Luke on album that appears to promote themes of female empowerment, independence and positivity.
The American producer, real name Łukasz Sebastian Gottwald, worked with Perry after settling a decade long legal dispute with pop star Kesha, who he initially sued in 2014 when she accused him of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse – an allegation he strenuously denied.
On X, formerly Twitter, the mission was slammed as a ‘vanity project for celebrities’
Perry was later savaged for collaborating with controversial producer Dr. Luke (pictured) on her latest album 143
The American producer worked with Perry after settling a legal dispute with Kesha (pictured) who he sued in 2014 when she accused him of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse
Given the context, an album loaded with song titles like Women’s World, I’m His, He’s Mine, Gimme Gimme and All The Love was always going to be a hard sell for Perry – and a red rag for critics.
Referencing the controversy during an appearance on the Call Her Daddy podcast, she sais: ‘I understand that it started a lot of conversations. And he was one of many collaborators that I collaborated with.
‘But the reality is it comes from me. The truth is I wrote these songs from my experience of my whole life going through this metamorphosis, and he was one of the people to help facilitate all that—one of the writers, one of the producers.
‘I am speaking from my own experience. When I speak about Woman’s World, I speak about feeling so empowered now as a mother, as a woman, giving birth creating life, creating another set of organs, a brain, a heart.
‘I created a whole whole heart and I did it. I’m still doing it. And I’m still a matriarch. And feeling really grounded in that, that’s where I’m speaking from.’
If Perry’s music career is off the cards, Trudeau might be keen to elaborate on his memorable time in office as Canada’s 23rd Prime Minister, a role he occupied for ten years before resigning in January.
Trudeau’s popularity plummeted in 2021 after an unearthed photo from a notorious ‘Arabian Nights’ party he attended 20-years earlier captured him in full blackface
In 2019, equally problematic pictures from the same event emerged online, but it was the first time an image from the event had been released in colour
But you wouldn’t blame him for wanting to skirt around his youth, notably the notorious ‘Arabian Nights’ party he attended in 2001.
It will forever be a testy subject for the liberal-minded Trudeau, whose popularity plummeted in 2021 after an unearthed photo from the bash captured him in full blackface.
Canada’s future Prime Minister had inadvertantly added more fuel to the fire by completing the look with flowing robes and raffish turban.
Trudeau had a hard time talking his way out of the gaffe, and the self-proclaimed feminist who once took the knee during a Black Lives Matters protest following the death of George Floyd was promptly labelled a ‘fake.’
Others were quick to point out that the famously woke Trudeau was not a naive teenager but 29-years old and a responsible teacher when he attended the Arabian Nights party.
Photos of the notorious event first emerged in 2019 – prompting outrage and a swift apology from Trudeau – but 2021 was the first time a colour image from the party had been released.
The gaffe, coupled with his handling of the thousands of First Nations unmarked graves at former residential school sites, subsequently triggered a powerful backlash against the then Prime Minister.
Much like his recent dinner date, the former PM is single – some two years after confirming his separation from wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau after 18-years of marriage
Trudeau originally announced the separation on Instagram in matching posts written in both English (pictured) and French
Trudeau out with wife Sophie and their three children Ella-Grace, Hadrien and Xavier in 2021
Water under the bridge one might say, and anyway, who cares when Trudeau already shares plenty of common ground with Perry?
Much like his recent dinner date, the former PM is single – some two years after confirming his separation from wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau following 18-years of marriage.
Lots to discuss over an intimate dinner then, but Trudeau may well be reluctant to delve into their unexpected separation, and the public fall from grace that followed.
Trudeau originally announced the split on Instagram in matching posts written in both English and French. His office also released a statement to confirm they had reached a legal agreement and would remain amicable for the sake of their three children.
But commentators were quick to assess how the announcement would affect his career and carefully curated image in the lead-up to the 2025 election.
Columnist Jamie Sarkonak observed in the National Post at the time: ‘The timing doesn’t bode well for the prime minister – especially since much of his personal marketing has to do with image.
‘Trudeau can no longer play the loving husband, the family man. He can’t live by example on the family file, because he can’t claim personal success on that front.’
Trudeau and Sophie Gregoire wave to onlookers on their wedding day back in 2005
The former Canadian Prime Minister is pictured with his wife in their younger years
In 2014, Trudeau was able to settle rumors about infidelity after a line in his autobiography, Common Ground, was deemed ambiguous.
He wrote: ‘Our marriage isn’t perfect, and we have had difficult ups and downs, yet Sophie remains my best friend, my partner, my love.
‘We are honest with each other, even when it hurts.’
The separation coincided with a downturn in popularity for Trudeau and a dramatic reversal of fortune for Canadian liberals, with poll numbers declining across the country even before his separation was made public.
After ten years in office, Trudeau confirmed his resignation in January.
Perry recently split from Bloom and is currently on tour, with stops including Ottawa on Tuesday, Montreal on Wednesday, Quebec City on Friday, and two dates in Toronto next week
At her peak, Perry helped usher in the sound of 2000s pop, quickly becoming one of the best-selling artists of all time (pictured with Madonna and Donatella Versace in 2018)
A communications consultant for the restaurant Le Violon confirmed Tuesday that the former prime minister and the singer spent about two hours at the fine-dining spot Monday evening.
Photos of the unexpected meet-up, originally published by TMZ, sparked speculation of a budding romance.
Samantha Jin said the pair kept to themselves and neither the staff nor other patrons approached them for a photo.
‘We kind of got the vibe that they were a little more chill,’ she said.
Jin added that there was no indication of romance in the air, noting: ‘visual signs of PDA or anything.’
The report about the dinner first appeared on TMZ, which posted video of Trudeau and Perry in animated conversation at the eatery.
Trudeau’s marriage collapse coincided with a downturn in popularity for Canadian liberals, with poll numbers declining across the country even before his separation was made public
After ten years in office, Trudeau confirmed his resignation in January (pictured announcing his decision to step down as Prime Minister of Canada)
During the meal, Jin said security watched from the bar as the pair noshed on a menu featuring a range of appetisers including tuna, beef tartare, lobster and asparagus, with lamb as their main course.
Jin said Chef Danny Smiles stopped by their table to say hello, and before heading out, they came into the kitchen to thank the team.
Born and raised in California, Perry is a 13-time Grammy Award nominee. She helped usher in the sound of ´00s pop, quickly becoming one of the best-selling artists of all time for her campy, big, belting anthems.
She has released seven studio albums, most notably 2010´s sugar-sweet Teenage Dream. The album produced five number one singles, matching a record set by Michael Jackson with the release of his 1987 album Bad.
