Where’s the most culturally enchanting place you’ve visited?
I’ve only been to Morocco for a moment but that was fascinating and the people were so warm, but I could say the same about Japan – or Liberia. I went there with Mariella Frostrup [and The Great Initiative, a a gender equality charity]. It was remarkable. To be in this place that’s still recovering from civil war and to see all the great strides that have been made in such a short period of time… The women are so impressive; so self-assured and so certain of their intentions and values. The way they utilise their power [to] influence change was so admirable. And they adorn themselves immaculately, which I thought, ‘Wow, that’s interesting,’ because it’s recognising and embracing another side of female power.

Last night was historic for America [Hillary Clinton was confirmed as the official Democratic Party nominee]. Do you feel excited and energised by that?
It made me teary, yeah. We were here when they finished counting the votes and made the announcement, and we were recording the television footage with our phones – to remember where we were and to mark the moment. It’s extraordinarily moving to see women [achieve that].

Michelle Obama’s speech [at the Democratic convention] was also immensely powerful. And her Carpool Karaoke killed it. Is that big here?
My girlfriend who lives in Brighton introduced it to me! Can you binge Carpool Karaoke? Because that’s what we did. One Sunday morning, we just sat there and went through all of them. Fan. Tastic. It’s so joyful.

What’s your favourite one? I got a bit obsessed with the Bieber.
It was great! Wasn’t it great?

You saw a different side to him.
Yeah. Vulnerable and sweet, right? I know, that was delightful. I got teary on Stevie Wonder, I love Stevie Wonder. And I loved [James Corden] singing with Adele because he was so good [laughing]. Adele was like, “Oh!” I haven’t seen Michelle Obama but I am determined to google that. I have to say, my girlfriends and I have had this conversation – Michelle Obama and her husband have made us proud to be Americans these last eight years. Such elegance and grace, and intelligence. It’s made me proud.

They’re the full package, aren’t they?
Completely. It’s been so nice to have a young family in the White House again; to watch their kids grow up. And to have a couple who are so deeply in love has been gorgeous. Did you see President Obama tweeted, “I love you, Michelle” after her speech? What an elegant man, and couple.

You recently took a six-year break. What was the deciding moment?
I can’t say it was any one thing but I was just recognising that there were so many other things I wanted to explore; promises I’d made to myself I wanted to keep, and things I was interested in that I wanted to discover whether or not I had aptitude for. And it was time. Because you could very easily keep going with whatever it is that has your full attention, and then five years pass and then 10… And then it never comes.

How easy was it to relax after being so busy and career-focused?
It was more of a process than, “Right, starting tomorrow…” [It wasn’t] like camp, you know? [Laughs] It was deciding not to do the next picture… and then life fills in the blanks. Oh, dad’s having surgery – I’m going to go do that. Oh, my best friend’s having a baby – I’m going there.

So a seeing where the wind takes you type of thing?
It wasn’t so much that because that sounds like a holiday [laughs], but there were new commitments that I wanted to make. Like move to Los Angeles [Zellweger previously lived on the East coast] to be near my writing partner because I wanted to create this new television show that I believed in and wanted to see happen. I knew it would be a more rewarding process if I was in the room watching this piece that I had imagined since college come to life. Those kinds of commitments took a different kind of discipline and it gave me a new understanding of this business that I have been working in for so many years; a more comprehensive understanding.

Years ago, you spoke in an interview about a list of things you wanted to achieve: “To study American history and political science, live in an apartment in France and fix my bad French”. Did you tick off any of those things?
I did [laughing]. I did.

Which one?
Well I didn’t live in an apartment in Paris so…

So you studied! How different was it [Zellweger graduated in English at the University of Texas at Austin]; did you gain a fresh appreciation?
It’s not perfunctory. I know it’s not the end of the world if you don’t ace the test – and so you are probably more inclined to ace the test because you’re motivated by interest, rather than obligation. And oh, I loved it. There’s a different kind of joy in the learning; it isn’t so you can get on to the next thing; it’s so you can understand.

You’ve said you saw the break as an opportunity to grow up; do you feel more grown up now?
I have new perspective. I’ve learned a lot and I don’t mean that in an existential way; I’ve made an effort to learn things, and so I’ve matured in different ways.

Do you think our careers are starting to define us too much?
I don’t know, maybe. I mean in my personal experience, yes, but again it depends on the individual and the choices that they make for themselves; what they prioritise and how good they are at balancing.

While you were away, were there any films you would have loved to have been involved in?
No, but there have been tons that I admire, like Amy Schumer’s Trainwreck made me laugh. She was brilliant, I didn’t know she was a phenomenal actress – and she is. And brave. I admire her.

The six year itch: why taking a career sabbatical helped Renée Zellweger find her happy