Ingrid Seward is a prominent editor, writer and royal biographer in the UK. She’s the editor for Majesty Magazine, but she writes for other publications and provides quotes and explanatory interviews for American publications. The last time we mentioned Seward, it was last month. She wrote a SCATHING piece for the Daily Mail following several high-profile misfires and PR bungles from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Seward attacked them openly, calling them “a rich, increasingly spoiled couple growing surprisingly distant.” She attacked their privilege, their tone-deaf PR strategies, their entitlement. It was pretty amazing. But now Will and Kate’s fifth anniversary is coming up (tomorrow) and Seward has been called in to offer analysis of how Kate has fared in her first five years within The Firm.
How Kate has done in five years: “I think she’s integrated extremely well. It’s not easy – not a lot of guidance – but of course she has the best teacher in William. I think that’s made a massive difference – having his hand on her hand. She hasn’t made any mistakes which is extraordinary when you think of how difficult it is for her. I suppose the only mistake she’s made is that she’s probably seen not always as particularly interesting but I think she’s absolutely terrified of not doing it right. I think she feels a great responsibility on her slender shoulders to do the right thing and be seen to be doing the right thing.”
Whether Kate needs to step up & have a larger voice: “She’s got so long to be there that I don’t think there’s any need for her to be passing her own opinions yet because she’s got years to do it. If she wanted to do, she would, but she obviously doesn’t want to.”
Will & Kate are BFFs: “I think she’s probably his best friend and vice versa. You get pretty isolated up there in that ivory tower of royalty.”
The “workshy” and “dolittle” criticisms: “The timing was right for a couple of blips to happen. They were so much on top of the pedestal there was only one way and that was down.”
Well, somebody is back in the good graces of Poor Jason. Even though other outlets are running with the “Kate is terrified” quote like it’s some kind of shade, that quote actually reads as a compliment. As in, Seward thinks Kate has barely made any mistakes in the past five years. Which… really? And here’s the thing: last month, I thought the workshy/dolittle thing was going to blow over too. But the British-media reaction to Will and Kate’s India-Bhutan tour made it clear that the gloves are off with the Cambridges and that (to mix metaphors) a page has been turned. So it will be interesting to see if Poor Jason can work his magic and create some positive headlines around this anniversary… which I assume Will and Kate will be spending “privately.” Probably with Carole.
Last thing… Kate added something to her schedule for next week. She’ll be unveiling The Magic Garden at Hampton Court Palace next Wednesday. Go here to read more.
Photos courtesy of PCN, WENN.
You’d think is she’s that afraid to get it wrong, she’d try a lot harder to get it right.
How much harder can a person try?
I’m inclined to be easier on her than William, because really, she is taking his lead. He is work-shy so is she. But I think the backlash has been a lesson, and they are both going to be working a lot hard now. Hopefully.
I agree with you. I think that as usual, the woman gets the biggest part of the blame when really it should fall on him. Put yourself in her L.K.Bennetts for a moment. She has no choice but to follow his lead or totally upstage him. Those are two horrible choices.
“How much harder can a person try?”
Well, when it’s Kate and William, a whole heck of a lot. Kate hasn’t dedicated more than a perfunctory effort to doing her job and doing it well in the full five years since she got her HRH. She blows off traditional engagements because she doesn’t want to create expectations that she will continue to appear, and she skips out on highly publicized events like her “guest editing” scheme to go shopping. She’s disinterested and uninteresting. And for some bizarre reason, she continues to have problems with her damn skirt flying up at serious occasions.
I cut her a lot of slack in the beginning, but even IF William were holding her back from doing more, it doesn’t explain why she’s still so rubbish at the events she does do.
I think when two 90+ year olds each do more than 100 more royal engagements than you, there is probably room for a little more effort.
She’s 34 years old and, allegedly, intelligent but still lacks the common sense to put weights in her hem so not to flash the biscuit at war dead memorials, something which has happened REPEATEDLY. As such she deserves as much shade as he – neither are even trying! She can improve and do better but she chooses not to, regardless of who’s lead she is following.
Silky: How much harder?
Show up, pin on some shamrocks for an hour + 1/2, shop for the rest of the day. DON’T talk about not wanting people to have expectations you will show up every year. It’s not that complicated and I’m not seeing any real effort.
It’s apparent, at least in photographs, which is all I have to go on, that she adores William and that he seems to care little for anyone but himself. The shade should be on him! He’s the heir to the heir; he’s been raised in “The Firm”. He is responsible for setting the tone for their “work”.
I came here to say that it would be better for Kate to try and fail than not to try at all but I think there’s more nuance than that. She likely walks a very thin line and knows that she can be ousted. So I do think that her desperation to get everything right holds her back but what choice does she really have?
I tend to agree with this. Kate wasn’t born to royalty. She takes her lead from her husband. And who knows? Perhaps they had an agreement with the marriage that Kate wanted to primarily be a wife/mother. I wouldn’t be surprised at this at all. But then that means that William needs to step it up and take on much more than just his share of the royal duties, if this is the case. As for Kate being afraid to get it wrong, I can see that up to a point. But then another Marilyn moment happened. If you are really afraid of getting it wrong, why do you keep getting the same, simple thing wrong time and time again?
@ SilkyMalice,
“He is work shy so is she”. You got that right! They are a match made in heaven. She has never worked in her life. Finding Workshy Willy was like meeting her soul mate. Two lazy slackers in paradise.
If William did more work, I think the criticisms of Kate would be less. The problem is that both of them aren’t doing much. If one covers for the other, I think people might lay off Kate. She can probably cultivate an identity as the mother who is raising the Future King while William works. But both of them not working? — that’s a little weird. I don’t even get why William doesn’t want to work, prince or not — most men like to have some kind of work identity; it’s kind of drilled into them by society that it’s better for men to have one, or at least a public work identity, even if you’re just an average guy down the street.
@perplexed,
Oh, but he possesses an identity that supersedes even the work identity. When asked to describe himself he said, “Prince”. He might as well have said, a god.
She does no prep, dresses inappropriately, and looks bored at most events. How is this her husband’s fault?
She does not care. If she cared, she’d be On Point for the few times she shows up to work.
I’m not buying this at all. The lack of prep for the India/Bhutan tour is not the mark of someone who fears failure.
Agree. It was obvious that neither of them had done much in terms of pre-work. It was embarrasing to say the least.
This is a really good point. If she was so afraid of failing she wouldn’t consistently be underprepared for her engagements. She would do research on her own and have something substantial to contribute while working. It’s not like she is overly burdened with work, she has plenty of time to do some google searches.
Me neither. Come on it isn’t that hard to do a little research.
She is capable of doing research and applying herself when it matters to her. To wit (from the Telegraph):
“There was Kate, sitting alone, watching the (polo) match intently. “Why don’t you come and join the rest of the party?” miss Lette asked. “I’ve got to pay attention to every second,” Kate said. “I’ll be discussing the game in minute detail later on.” “
Aren’t there advisors who can help them with the prep work? That’s where I’m a little baffled as to why some things are so hard for them to adapt to.
I think the public scrutiny of their jobs is difficult, but the actual researching of certain things and pre-emptive planning, which are done by advisors, wouldn’t be hard in their cases. Heck, I think even Pippa, if she’s the only one the Cambridges might trust, could do some googling for Kate and William, and some problems could be prevented. If they’re looking to hire, I’d be willing to do that grunt work for them — that kind of stuff is fun.
They do have advisors and staff to assist them and do prep work. It’s also in the interest of the Foreign Office to have them put their best foot forward on foreign tours or when they meet with foreign officials so that’s an entirely separate set of people to assist them as well. They’re not sent in blind.
Their staff and the foreign office can do all of the fact sheets and reports and pre-tour visits and briefings in the world but there’s only so much they can do. They can’t force William or Kate to read or pay attention to what’s prepared for them ahead of engagements and meetings. Or force them to have any interest in the moment in the people they’re meeting with, the places or events they go to, or the subject matter of their events/patronages.
Yep entitled at least. They just showed up to grace the mases.
I have a friend. She is not a princess (but don’t tell her that) but she thinks that only her presence it’s enough to make someone fall at her feet. Reality has hit her hard all her life but she still thinks she is this amazing, perfect, sexy, smart, beautiful and unique person. She has all those qualities, don’t get me wrong, but in small doses, average at best but still.
Once she walked in an institution for work related issues. She demanded to meet the director and made such a fuss that his secretary had to call him on the phone citing an urgent matter. The man came in a hurry and she meet him, gave him an official letter of presentation/ cooperation (don’t ask me what is that i don’t know), made him get her a drink he didn’t have in his office, just put it in her lips, didn’t like it, told him so and walked out of there pretty happy with herself. Needless to say the man was PISSED. The vice director is a friend of mine. He told me because of her behavior he refused cooperation. And she told me i put a spell on him but we are not cooperating because someone isn’t preparing the papers right. I told her the truth and she told me: “But the drink was warm. He SHOULD have known that. How was i supposed to drink that”. I mean…..
Imagine this girl with all the privileges in the world ALL her life. She would be like Billy boy and his wife of his too.
She is following his lead i am sure. More so because it’s what she knows and wants to do. I mean 10 years waiting and not working. She should have been under the guidance of a strong woman in the family and learn to do her job properly. Each time i see her photos i cringe. It’s obvious she is not used at all to her role. Nobody is guiding her, much less William. He is just putting his insecurities on her. She is worse then the beginning.
Katydid20, exactly what I thought when I first saw the headline. Let’s all be honest here and not enablers. She knew what she was getting into and if she has hesitations she should have declined the rank and responsibility by saying no to Wills. I’m sure she wouldn’t be the first.
It seems that Ingrid Seward has been spoken to. The only thing Kate is terrified of is that William will grow tired of her and leave her. Oh, and the fallout from Carole Middleton should it happen. She has shown little to no intention of stepping up to the plate in terms of her Royal duty. The only thing she seems good at is spending lots of money that she and her loser husband didn’t earn and displaying her exhibitionist tendencies on a regular basis.
Did you know she was called KATE Middlebum in school for mooning people? The exhibitionism has a long history.
Yes, I saw that in the DM. So embarrassing but she doesn’t seem bothered because she keeps doing it.
If you want to read the article, use the search term “Kate Middlebum” on the DM search engine. I’ve tried to provide the link twice, but I can’t seem to publish it here (for some reason?). The article was up for only a few hours on Sunday afternoon.
I’m convinced the author researched that story and others from royal fan blogs and forums.
It’s a testament to the level of whitewashing her reputation was given at her engagement that it took 5yrs for that story to make it into an official biography and to be repeated mainstream paper.
Before the whitewash, it was widely available in vwidely articles of various publications.
It was in Katie Nichols’ bio of Kate written a few years ago. That’s where I read it.
seriously? goodness.
Clearly had a talking to or just doing it for a buck. Seward was very succinct, measured and specific in the “takedown” article. Here she is speaking entirely with conjecture and generalities. We are disappointed. But she (gets a little passive aggressive near the end there and) isn’t actually dying on the hill to defend Bill and DoLittle. She can’t really. She can only deflect.
I detect some oh so subtle shade in that article. She may have been told to write some sugar, but there’s some saccharine in there, too.
Has she been trawling the fan blogs? The excuses sound just like sugar cult speak.
Terrified of messing up. Is Kate’s theory: if I do nothing, I can not mess up?
Trying and failing is part of the job, and mistakes would have been easily forgiven in the first couple years. But now we’re 5 years on, it’s getting late to start trying. So they’re sticking to their never try, never fail mission.
No speeches. No interviews more than 30 seconds. No more visits she is uncomfortable with: when was her last hospital visit? Exactly.
This is what I was thinking, that Kate was so afraid to mess up she just decided not to try. (To quote Homer Simpson – “trying is the first step toward failure”). I’d probably be petrified if I was in her position, but yeah, it’s lame that 5 years later she’s still supposedly so afraid.
I think if she tried, messed up, learned from it and moved on then the public would most likely be less harsh with her. Laziness in someone so privileged isn’t nice to see, no matter the excuse.
This could be related to her campaign to land William, too. She spent nearly a decade being coached by her mother and trying not to put a foot out of line lest she upset the big baby. She went a-running every time William called (no self-respect there) and kept herself available by refusing to work a real job. Kate hasn’t put herself out there for real failure to be a possibility.
Even so, at this point there are no excuses for her lack of commitment.
I just thought of an Afrikaans proverb:”Om te probeer is die beste keer”. She doesn’t try that much; if she did she would be much better. Plenty of royals(esp. those who have married in) have talked about how doing more=learing more and improving more. How would she get better if she didn’t try?
Cosquared are you a fellow Saffer? 🙂
^Yep. A black Saffa who has had the best Afrikaans teachers.
+1 – I ain’t in the freakin’ mood today to list every dumb dumb thing Bill and Bucket have said, done, or not done. But I will say that I don’t believe for one second that “The Hair” is terrified. And I’m shouting BS over the inference that it’s out of fear of putting a foot wrong, ’cuz Kate feels that pressure and takes it all super seriously. I guess it was immobilization by a fear of failure and anxiety over disappointing people that made Kate skip out on the Irish Guard? Seward is just trying to go to the same well of infantilization/victimization that people default to all the time trying to excuse Kate’s behavior even when there’s absolutely no evidence to back it up. How many times have we gone around in circles on this site over, “Maybe she has anxiety”, “she could have postpartum depression”, “well if I was scrutinized or criticized like Kate I’d stay home too”, “perhaps she doesn’t like Mondays.” (Ok, I made that last one up.) Now Ingrid’s basically doubled-down suggesting that being inoffensive is Kate’s biggest crime, while dancing around the issue that it’s been FIVE YEARS, and Kate spent a decade hustling for this, and she’s a grown ass woman. (And for the millionth time, why do people act like Will and Kate are re-inventing the wheel, or going into uncharted territory? Like what they’re doing is so impossible, terrifying and such a burden.) If Kate was so terrified she’d sing for her supper. My goodness, I’ve previously ranted http://www.celebitchy.com/461075/dm_the_queen_quietly_advised_duchess_kate_to_get_a_more_appropriate_hairstyle/#comment-14853470 about how the way she dresses illustrates her shadiness and lack of f*cks to give. William and Kate are this terrible combination of stupid being cheerled by ego. They truly think they are just great. I don’t think there’s any cure for that. And if half the things that people have always said about Kate are true you see the same themes repeating themselves over decades into these last five years. (Google “lovelola Impressions Of Kate”) None of it’s new. And Kate’s not going to change.
+1 to everything you said, Amber!
Preach! They are willfully lazy and indolent and nobody got time for their lame excuses.
Yep a thousand. It sums it up well.
I completely agree. If she was so terrified of failure she would learn from her past mistakes. She would learn how to dress appropriately, there would be no flashing her bum or wearing bright pink to the 9/11 memorial. She would be prepared to contribute to her charities in a meaningful way whenever she attended an event. She would hire people to help her and actually listen to their advice.
Exactly! She’s not a little girl; she’s a 30-something woman who’s been with William for 10 years, so she knew exactly what would be expected of her and exactly what she’d be getting into. And William was born into this role and groomed for it his entire life – if there’s no excuse for her, there’s even less for him.
Amen, Amber!
Wow, that Love Lola stuff was a FANTASTIC read. Thanks for the heads up!
Amber, I have to agree. But that Love Lola piece…I am utterly gobsmacked. How did they manage to bury this? I guess the bland do-nothingness is the real deal from the beginning of time, as we suspected after giving up on her.
i don’t know why or how people are so naive, such suckers, that they defend this incredibly privileged woman! She’s not a full-time mom, she doesn’t take care of a house, she doesn’t prepare for the few events that she does, what does she do??????? His money isn’t his own, it comes from the Duchy, owned by the people of Britain. He doesn’t bring in tourists. Ugh.
I’m sorry, these two knuckleheads get me ragey- so much privilege, so little giving back.
I know I am terrified by that look in the last pic. Does anyone know what were they doing when the photo was taken?
I posted just after you, I have no idea but it suggests there’s a nasty piece of work in there just waiting to get out…
ITA.
Eh. I think it is just a combination of squinting and a resting b!tch face.
This is what I call the “creepy stare”; the “I wish you were dead, right now, at this moment” stare.
The photos posted on this site of Duchess Milk-Toast are delightful.
It looks like the safari in India. I’m not a Kate apologist by any means, but pictures are one split second. She could have had the wind in her eyes and squinted. You can create any kind of narrative with someone who has pictures taken of them non-stop every time they step foot into a public space.
I mean, or she could have been sending a death glare to the photographers. I don’t know her life.
I may be wrong, but I think I have seen similar photos of her with that look.
I myself have a really grumpy face when caught off guard, so I agree with you that that we can’t tell by looking at pics. But it’s such a huge contrast with the other ones where she’s grinning like mad.
That’s her death glare – i’ve seen it before. There is a photo floating around of her giving that glare to a group of women William was chatting to, she was in the background.
She was caught giving that look to one of the photographers at the memorial in India too.
Betti
I remember that pics too, it was at an engagement. She seriously should feel ashamed about that, I think!
Her gaze and demeanor are focussed. She doesn’t deserve the benefit of the doubt. Especially because that stare has happened before, several times.
Ha! Just posted re. this photo… a couple more from India are similar in terms of showing the brittle ‘I want what I want and will get it’ Kate.
Slightly surprised his tongue isn’t sticking out in concentration as he paints that – ‘thingy’ in that first photo, and in the second one her look could curdle milk at 100 paces. Come to think of it, in that second photo she’s actually showing more personality than I ever guessed she had.
I don’t believe she’s scared of getting it right, I do believe she’s scared of being asked to do anything in the first place outside of her comfort zone. Her world must be incredibly narrow and – for her – safe, it’s sad that’s probably exactly how she and William both want it. They seem to want an ossified existence.
So in that picture above, which is more useful: Kate, or the bowl of fruit she’s looking at?
I guess Kate moves and breathes a bit more, although they both eat about the same. But the bowl of fruit actually serves a purpose and costs less, and is slightly more intelligent than Kate. Why not just replace Kate with that bowl of fruit?
“….they both eat about the same”. Bwahaha!
with all Kate´s love for attention and being in the spotlight, I cannot believe she has not yet get used to her position i. e. job. It was said long time ago she dictated her own schedule; so we know nobody is holding her but herself. William said in the recent documentary about the Queen that she (Quenny) admired and respected his plans of being a “normal – but – still – royal – I – am – the – King” father, and I think it transmits over Kate too. So William does not work, Kate does not work neither. There were rare engagement where Kate looked interested. She is simply not into this job. She married Will not because she wanted to contribute to diverse charities or because she liked the job of being royal in general. She waited for 10 years and sucked it all up to get all the privileges that come along with being royal. Besides, I think Kate does realize she is no Diana, she has zero charisma, she lacks common knowledge, so she knows she sucks in this job. That´s it.
Ingrid, Ingrid. Two steps forward, one step back! Ho hum. Too many other rows going on this side of the Pond at the moment. I think the newspapers will go quiet on the BRF until 24 June, at which point we can look forward to round 2.
Seward’s entire career (like Junor’s) is royals. If they cut her off, she’d have to learn to be an outsider. If the royals lose popularity, Seward loses money. Then again, whatever sells her columns and magazines is what she’ll do. Criticize one week, praise another.
I wonder about access, NOTA. What kind of exclusive access and information do reporters get that makes it worthwhile, and makes it worthy of pandering? Because I’m not seeing the upside.
Agree with hmmm. All royal reporters vary the press releases doled out to them by KP, there’s no independently uncovered news. Same pics. What advantage does an insider have, apart from feeding personal vanity of ‘knowing’ royalty?
If they get on the wrong side of W&K, they are denied passes or only certain reporters are invited to things (ex. christening).
She is a gift for Republicans. After queenie dies, things will defenitely change for the house of Windsor.
Part of me thinks, she is smart and capable of showing human feelings but horsey does not want her to. Also, d
while at st. andrews, stood up for somethingrelated to girls being allowed to do something . I don’t remember it right now.
“…but horsey does not want her to.” Bingo.
I know some fault Kate for being lifelong lazy, but she will do what’s necessary to get what she wants, and I’m pretty sure her training in William’s hands went something like this, “you will not upstage me. I am the future king, you will not upstage me, ever, or else.” And I believe that boy has a temper and a mean tongue. Emotional abuse knows no socioeconomic boundary.
This 180 is bizarre. Was it Jason or the sugars who scared Ingrid into submission?
So the highers up got to Ingrid Seward – disappointing… I agree with the comments about Kate liking the idea of being royal but being too sheltered and immature and lazy to do the work. And yes – she’s only afraid of William leaving her and the Wrath of Mummy. She’s an unfortunate mix of Marie Antoinette and Katherine Howard….
Except Marie Antoinette and Katherine Howard were actual children when they married.
yeah this x100…it was a bit different back then, ya know, when most women couldn’t even read or write or own property…waity was a rich girl with doting parents who attended upper class private schools, traveled and got into a prestigious university. She could’ve had a great career, dated, hobnobbed and/or become a socialite on her own merit. Chattel she was not.
@megan – true!
@kaiko – ah, but chattel she has become. Which in some ways is almost worse… To have those advantages you list & squander them for submissive sloth…
I assume there was a cheesy snacks reception for journos, because even the DM is telling people to celebrate. #POORJASON is pulling out all the stops.
The Marketing Team’s Get to Know Your Betters thought-sharing initiative begins today. The team are thrilled to kick off their series with marketing assistant Cath M.
“I am without doubterson especially keen on some issues, as well as others,” says Cath about herself. “For example, I enjoy the target distribution of printed headbands, which perforetochance has become Mr Wallering’s 2016 goal as he works to venticulate his mission with stolid examples of truly stinted caring. Whilst my shoulders are somewhat brittle from sliimming, Mr Wallering is the first or second to say they have carried their share of the burdensomeness of employment, including the rucksack of his lip balm and MagickBrush hairbrushes whilst we was up in the Indian monklands, or assembling his collage of photos of him near airbornelike vehicles. My quiet tasks as I call ‘em, is where I feel most relaxed as I am just handed the things and told where to walk, and allowed to rest for days in between in the lounge, as being a mere slip of a girl at thirty-five I am still finding my nubile way as my hair appointments was in confliction with the mentoring program hours. I hope to be up to more by when I am on to fifty or sixty, but I do not pressure meself, as that causes follicle damage.”
Adds Cath, “What do I fear? Well, it’s being nearly our thirteenth anniversary of me keepin’ an eye on Mr Wallering, though some say five as my capacity was only deficient prior, I still fear doin’ the wrong thing daily, so as most would, I tries to follow my Mr Wallering’s example of doin’ far less to nothing, as like him, I am highly fortunate to ‘ave a junior who we send out on policy deliveries and whatnot. Whilst this service is in regular flotation, Mr Wallering and I ‘ave been keenly takin’ the firm’s free Wellness classes devoted to bettering our abs and ability to wear the fashion clothes, and are unilaterally focused at creating soothin’-like surrounding décor with the liberal use of lamps and pictures in real gold frames, which we feel casts us the sort of leaders who will be truly tolerable. This has gotten me over my fear of serving cheap liquor and box crackers to top leaders in meetings as well! As Mr Wallering taught me, when one can learn to say whatever, the assistant did it. Life opens itself up to less-ness, which is so much more comfortable for conflicted folk like me and Mr Wallering, and gives staff their chance to do more!”
You can learn more about Cath M. on the company intranet. Next time: What Mr Wallering Fears.
I am stealing “without doubterson” for my own personal – and frequent – use. You won’t mind, darling?
Sixer, signing all rights of use over to you, dear!
So Cath M may step up when she is 50 or 60. That is impressve, because my guess was 90 or 100 would be her preference.
“The burdensomeness of employment”. I’m dying.
“Stolid examples of truly stilted caring.”
Ha ha ha! Liberty, I am crying. 😂
Thank you for another episode of Cath and Mr Wallering. You know I look for it on these threads. Lol
Don’t get too excited Magnoliarose. I’m still waiting to find out what happened to Romina!
Lol sorry, bluhare, the romina installments don’t make it past, so they’re currently elsewhere.
Life opens itself up to less-ness – bahaha!!! And cheap liquor & box crackers… My tea just came out my nose laughing! Please give us another instalment bientot!
Kate is not interesting but it’s not one of her mistakes as Seward would like us to believe. Seward is either clueless or willfully blind in this piece. I’m gonna go with willfully blind. Being interesting is not necessary or expected of royals and therefore it does not qualify as one of Kate’s mistakes.
Kate doesn’t need to be interesting and engaging, she just needs to be interested and engaged.
+1
+2
Kate hasn’t made mistakes?
Is Ingrid not counting flashing a war memorial in India as a mistake?
I guess Ingrid only cares about which side her bread is buttered.
Something’s yanking her chain. She writes a blistering article about WK possibly at the palace directive to take them down a notch and suddenly doing an about face, being more conciliatory now that the message got across. Sounds like the palace or other entity told her it’s time to play nice or else.
well, her best teacher is william 😉
Something has frightened Seward. How do you go from telling it like it is about this pair of layabouts to a couple “blips.” Diana mentioned threatening phone calls she received after separating from Charles and she received more of them leading up to the year she died. Maybe Seward received one recently?
To be honest I’m not even sure she cares. She does so little and makes the same mistake over and over again it’s hard to believe she cares about anything other than her self and how she looks.
Did anyone read the Ephraim hard castle piece calling Harry the people’s king? He also compared William to Edward.
I think she cares, maybe too hard that is her problem. But why making the same mistakes with her wardrobe is beyond me.
If she cared she would learn from her mistakes, prepare for her engagements, and hire/listen to experts. That’s just basic. And she doesn’t do that. She has flashed her bum on numerous occasions (I think she’s done that on every royal tour she’s been on) and still refuses to put weights on her dresses OR wear an outfit where it would be impossible to expose herself. She goes to engagements and makes it painfully clear that she did little or no prep work, like her Taj Mahal comments or her comments about mental health. When she goes to events she never has anything substantial to contribute. She doesn’t come across as particularly educated, thoughtful, or prepared. When she gives short speeches, she doesn’t have them memorized and there are clear signs that she didn’t take the time to practice.
Melly
I think it is a very complex issue. I agree with everything you have written, still I have the strangest feeling she wants to do everything perfectly. Maybe, as she has never worked she doesn’t know how to do that or sell herself. Or maybe I am wrong, and she is just a numb and boring person and she doesn’t care.
@Anett
I don’t think it’s a particularly complex issue. I’m sure she doesn’t want to mess up, but if she actually cared about doing her job correctly she has the means and the time to prepare herself. If she was truly worried about not being perfect, she would hire people to help her. She went to a good college and I presumed she learned that to take a test or write a paper you have to do research and study. She supposedly got good grades in school, which means she would have to come to class prepared. No one expects her to do anything earth shattering, just be prepared.
No, what I meant under complex is we have no clue about the dynamic between Will and Kate. I only suspect he pretty much controls her life too, from the very beginning she had never had a say in anything.
Agree about the prepared part, still no idea why and what holds her back doing so.
You could totally be right Anett, what do either of us really know! =) But I don’t think I believe that William controls her life to that extent. I don’t really believes he cares all that much. He comes across as extremely self centered and there have been loads of reports that he isn’t home as much as he’d like everyone to believe. I think she has plenty of time to prepare herself for engagements, how much time does it take to do some google searches and do some reading?
Perhaps there’s a real push/pull thing going on, along with some self sabotage. Because if she really doesn’t want to be out there doing the work what better way out than by undermining herself. Because flashing your bum to the boys on the bus is one thing. The world as a 34 year old woman is another. Combine that with the narrative of Kate as Super Mother, and there you have it.
bluhare Freud
Very interesting observation from Bluhare Freud. 🙂 Who knows it could be all true. I heard the first time about this Bumgate too. Gross!
I am sure she could find the time, oh and let’s not forget about Rebecca and HER assisstant. Because Rebecca has one too. LOL What the h.ll are they doing?:-)
I think she is terrified because she is very insecure and doesn’t want to jeopardize her relationships in any way. Instead of proving herself through work and maybe making some mistakes, she wants to stay away and be the non issue person.
What relationships? Aside from Will and her immediate family she doesn’t have any.
I think @realitycheck means she doesn’t want to jeopardize her relationship with William
That last stare though.
“If looks could kill” by Heart instantly popped into my head.
I suppose it is the result of her latest flashing photographed from every angle. lol
I bet so, haha!
She’s thinking “if only those pesky paparazzo’s wouldn’t always be snapping shots of my bits.”
I’m just wishing she could be bothered to show more character, class, and less a**.
PR Bullshit. She doesn’t give a flying f*ck.
Seriously. Poor Jason doesn’t seem to get that these fluff pieces designed to engender sympathy and support for them are just providing fodder for their critics.
So true. And it shows. She doesn’t even give enough f*cks to conceal the lack of giving a f*ck
LOL! Too true. She is the Queen of giving no f*cks? Is there an Order for that?
If Kate was truly afraid of making mistakes as a royal, she’d put more effort into it than worrying about matching her clothes to her settings. She’d make sure she was prepared and engaged. She’d insist her staff provide her with any and everything necessary to make her job easier, but she doesn’t.
The only job that Kate put her everything into is William.
A very good point! She had no problem sending out lackeys at taxpayers’ expense to research how to coordinate her clothes with the settings. So, she does know how to actively seek info and use it.
The only thing she is terrified of is losing the gig – but IMO its williams call that theyre not taking on enough royal duties. She wears Dianas ring but she would never do a Diana and upstage her husband. I think sewards had a warning to cool it as its th Queens birthday celebrations coming up in june and th Cambridges will be off limits for a while as they bask in th Queens glow. But if Bill doesnt change his attitude towards th british press it wont be long til the gloves will be off.
On the DM’s article of the dinner with the Obama’s, the last sentence stated that royal reporters were not allowed to take photos. They are pissed.
Actually, there was one WH photographer, and one of William’s photographer allowed.
Proving wolfpup’s point. Two pre-selected people, just like the hand-selected people at the “public-but-private” christening. Write facts about W&K and you’re off the invitation list.
I will say this about the British monarchy, they are wound extremely tight. There is a TON of pressure and anxiety in that family, that you really don’t see with the Swedish royalty. I think Sofia has been able to flourish because of that.
After one big misstep (deliberate entrapment) Sophie Wessex is doing just fine, no pressure cooker. Be bland, show up, and do the PR job. It is not a pressure cooker.
The main anxiety I see is W&K’s anxiety over the hoops they jump through trying to avoid doing 20 hpw of work for their country.
I think Anon was talking about Sofia of Sweden, nas.
Yes, I figured that. My point is there are other middle class married-ins who have fared just find in the British Royal Family. It is not an unbearable pressure cooker. Sophie Wessex was in PR, she made some mistakes. Now she keeps her head down, does the job, and doesn’t act like she cannot handle doing what is really a simple PR job.
I’d maybe buy the argument that Kate is terrified of not doing it right and letting people down if she’d ever previously cared about or committed to anything other than landing (and keeping) William. But she hasn’t. Her general disinterest in everything and everyone is just more of the same from her.
Has anyone else noticed that the royal reporters on Twitter have gone curiously silent about William, Kate, and Harry? They usually re/tweet Kensington Palace’s social media but not since the Obama photos fiasco. And there have been ‘big’ announcements like the Invictus Games schedule and William’s latest ‘task force’ on cyber bullying. The only outlet that has picked up the cyber bullying story so far is E Online (LOL). Are they giving KP a taste of its own medicine?
William thinks he’s so smart and PR savvy. If his initiatives get ignored, then it’s his own damn fault. Harry & Invictus will be fine because US media will pick up on his endeavors when he comes next week. But William? If the press can’t report on his charities, then they’ll report on his private activities.
I think it sucks that Harry is lumped in with the two idiots. He deserves the press coverage for his hard work. I hope the press doesn’t punish Harry for William & Kate’s failures.
I do too.
I hope Harry gets a clue because he is being used by them and everyone else. It is hard to rid oneself of the overriding notion of family duty which often means subsuming oneself. Hard to break away. I doubt that he will be able to do that, but I’m still hoping for it.
“She has the best teacher in William” “A great responsibility on her slender shoulders” – gag me with a spoon, Ingrid Seward.
I can see a grain of truth in her being timid because clearly the way she acted throughout her entire pre-engagement era relationship with William was timid in the extreme. Like she was afraid to live her life. During their brief breakup she splashed out by clubbing a few times and joining that rowing team thing. But then once he took her back she dropped the rowing thing, dropped the part time accessories buying job, and hunkered down (Bucklebury, skiing, Ibiza, Mustique) for 3 plus more years.
I don’t think she’s timid because she feels great responsibility. I think she’s timid because she only wants her life to be as pampered and cosseted as possible and will not rock the boat, even to do justice to her role and position.
No mistake?
For one, we have seen her boobs and butts more than we wanted too.
For two, she hardly had any engagements as she was on mat. leave or on holiday.
For three, she has managed to utter things like:”Gosh, that’s interesting “.
Fabergé egg moments, Perfume smelling and so much more we are blessed to miss.
For heavens sake, stop slut shaming women. May be she has a social disorder, she grew up rich and isolated from real world .Her idiotic comments aside, it takes brains to be admitted in St. Andrews university.
Criticize her work ethic because, she deserves it but stop body shaming.
Body shaming?? LOL
I was talking about her indecent pics, do not come and talk about slut and body shaming, please!!
Firstly, can we PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF CHIPS stop throwing around ‘slut shaming’ and ‘body shaming’ as ways to shut down discussions we don’t like? They are exhausted at this point and ought to be stricken from regular usage.
Secondly, that is not at all what’s going on with Kate. As far as I can recall, no one has ever said she shouldn’t or couldn’t be a sexual person. All that’s been asked of her is that she NOT flash the general public on official engagements at, say, memorials for war dead. She’s flashed the royal beave so much it cannot be chalked up to accident any longer, and it’s plain disrespectful and unprofessional of her to continue to do so. Expecting her to comport herself with a bit of decorum is not ‘shaming’ of any kind.
Body and slut shaming? Who is criticizing or policing her for having sex with her husband/boyfriend or enjoying sex or for sunbathing nude while on one of her many, many vacays?
She’s criticized for having her skirt flying up around her ears at official events. If she refuses to weight her hems then wear a slip so the world isn’t treated to the sight of her bum and/or biscuit because she doesn’t like wearing underwear or will only wear a thong. It’s not just one time, it’s hitting close to double digits since she’s married in that she’s had fly up situations. Or don’t wear a plunging v neck dress/top while at an official engagement that involves bending over to interact with children.
That’s not slut shaming that’s expecting a thirty-something adult to know professional and appropriate behavior and dress while interacting with children and/or while representing her country and monarchy in public.
Body shaming? That’s such a shallow, empty criticism. That’s all you’ve got?
Women who don’t support other women exposing their boobs/bums during official royal engagements have a special place in hell.
“we have seen her boobs and butts more than we wanted to”, really? I am sure nobody forced you to see. It is beyond our scope of imagination to see what does it feel to live under constant global microscope. Any one would forget their name under such circumstances. Just because she is a famous woman does not mean she is fair game.
@Starry
Sorry, but your argument holds no water.
Kate has showed up for events and let her skirt be carried away on the breeze. Repeatedly. She has showed up to events where bending over to interact with children is necessary wearing a dress that hits mid-thigh. Repeatedly. When she was very pregnant with George, she wore a tiny dress and let it fly up round her waist. If ANY of us did that in our professional lives, there would be hell to pay. Kate is a representative of a damned country–she could at least act like it!
@starrysky,
Nice way to stereotype women who critique in defence of this exhibitionist and by infantilising her.
Starry
Nobody forced me, but it was all over the place. She supposed to represent the royal family, and herself. One mistake is ok, but we are beyond that many times.
I think people like you should simply accept the fact that she is not perfect, nobody expects her to be but if she makes mistakes, those have consequences.
@Starrysky, I really couldn’t work out if you were being sincere, or wilfully disingenuous, and you may very well be right that K. Bucket does have a social disorder. If that were so, how wise was it that she, and her family, relentlessly chased such a high profile marriage prospect? When that target was achieved, is it too much to expect a grown woman to behave with some maturity and decorum in her “job” side of life, and befitting the station she achieved? Also, your reference to what it might take to get into St Andrew’s University, it takes what it has always taken; money (Uncle Gary’s), and influence, brains are often superfluous to requirements, for instance, they accepted one William Bucket, from that famously intelligent Windsor family.
And the trolls roll on.
She’s terrified of not doing it right? Well, she should try doing it in the first place. Geez. Excuse after excuse to get out of work. In any other job she would have been fired a long time ago.
+1
“The only way to learn how to do this job is to do it” – said pretty much every member of the BRF at some point in time
Ingrid Seward has reverted back to the usual fawning carried out by Royal reporters. I wonder if the press have been promised some sweeteners for easing up on the Dolittles.
I’m sure it must be difficult to carry out royal duties with everyone scrutinising all aspects of your appearance but, what did she expect? She hung around the royals for 10 years before the wedding. It has been 5 years since she married and she still can’t get it right. Practice makes perfect should be her new mantra.
Ingrid Seward: Duchess Kate ‘is not doing it right’.
(Just fixing the thread title.)
“I think she’s probably his best friend and vice versa.”
That sounds somewhat hesitant.
More likely, best partner in crime. I shudder at the thought of either’s friendship.
I’m actually supportive of Kate and William. Hit me! However I do think she should show more of her personality and take the criticism that comes along with it. Maybe people would respect her a bit more. I get the impression she feels like she’s walking on eggshells and tries to tread too carefully. Growing up it was the shy awkward kids who were always picked on and bullied. That’s what I think is happening on here with her. Am I right?
As for her styling, I think with her resources she could be more daring. She has gorgeous hair. I’d like to see it in a more updated style.
I don’t think she necessarily needs to show more personality, even though that would be nice! I think if she worked a couple days a week and was prepared for her engagements the majority of the criticism of her would go away. Most people (particularly on here) don’t expect her to do anything ground breaking. Just be educated on the charities she “supports” and contribute something of value to the discussion. She is in such a unique and special position where she could draw attention to important causes! It’s such a shame that she doesn’t use her position to help out those who are less fortunate. It would also be a good idea for her to stop flashing the cameras during official royal engagements. She can wear booty shorts and halter tops while she’s not working for all I care, but when she is at work I don’t think it’s too much to ask to dress professionally. A couple well tailored business suits would solve loads of problems! While working, she should wear her hair in a more professional way, out of her face and preferably in a nice up-do.
She doesn’t need personality to be effective. She doesn’t even need to change her wardrobe or hair. She simply needs to invest the time in learning about the issues she champions, show up on a regular basis, and provide the media with decent quotes crafted by a competent press manager.
If she did that, people would suddenly gush over her matronly style and wish their hair looked like hers. Her behavior is unflattering, so everything else about her comes across as unflattering.
Industriousness and earnestness, along with honesty, win the day every time. Not so much for this liar and her lying hubby.
BTW, most shy, awkward kids are not “picked on and bullied”. There is also no significant correlation between personality of the bullied and bully. Let’s not misinform the people, especially in a damaging way.
It’s also a lie that Kate was bullied. There is no evidence to support this. Someone needs to desperately make her look good though, and an ever ending victim.
Hmmm – I didn’t say anything about bullying. I was simply referring to the bad press she gets for her fashion and hair. Let’s not make my comment more than it is.
Megan,
This comment was clearly in response to Joannie’s . Sometimes responses get misplaced.
Is It all really an act she can’t be herself because she has to act posh, wear high shoes to be tall as a Norman knight, keep her accent clipped BBC 1930s, stay super thin because most Aristos like to be thin as a wippet.
Is her real personality comfy cuddly natural nature home cooking Home Counties with a touch of aw gore blimey ! Are we waiting to see the real Kate, we going to be waiting a very long time because I think she might be trying too hard to be something she isn’t and that is a quandary.
People seem to want to make excuses for her and her lazy cohort in crime. They are not held to any higher regard than the average person with a public job paid for by the citizenry of their country.
Now we are shaming her? Now maybe she’s suffering from mental illness. Now Workshy has been keeping the super Kate down and if it weren’t for him she’d be dynamic and knock it out if the ballpark.
Get real.
She’s been letdown by her parents and her husband, I do agree, but the other 75 percent is her. She’s worked her entire adult life to marry a man for wealth and social position in a contemporary era where royalty is no longer revered as it once was. People expect her to earn her keep and not lollygag around like she’s 15 freaking years old.
She has had choices and opportunities aplenty to change course or improve herself and she’s done nothing.
I think it is shameful to continue to behave like a juvenile exhibitionist on the world stage. It’s absurd her level of entitlement and how lazy she is.
I don’t get this idea that Diana’s son needs to be handled with kid gloves. Nope. The world doesn’t work that way or in his case non work that way.
This isn’t the ancien regime circa 1720. No one cares that he is a prince of the blood or has some divine right to special treatment.
I dare anyone to refuse to work their jobs, flash your colleagues and boss, use your expense account for various wiglets and vacations and demand respect. Go ahead apologists I dare you. Then as your sorry butt is escorted off the property, scream and kick and tell them you are just a fragile little angel and one day, after 15 years, you just might change your ways.
I love this rant. Thanks for venting the spleen of many. 🙂
Exactly!
Don’t know if it is true or not but one of the reasons going around about why she didn’t pass out the shamrocks was because there was an event she needed to attend at George’s school and she wanted it to be a secret so the press wouldn’t show up at the school.
Do you believe it, Pam? And if so, why?
Big “event” at a preschool? On a Thursday. When he likely attends MWF, not Thursdays. Because the English Montessori needed to celebrate an Irish Catholic saint?
The press cannot show up at the school, it is on a private road.
The answer was given to the press the week prior. She didn’t want to set up the expectation that she’d show up every year. When she didn’t show and people started howling about it? Then Jason scrambled and came up with she needed to spend every second with the children prior to the week long vacation tour.
She showed up the following day (Friday) with new haircut and highlights to “work” (aka shop) for 30 minutes at EACH. Odds are fairly good she spent hours at the salon on Thursday instead of attending the Irish Guards event.
She is so dull! Poor boring Kate…her style is boring, her persona is boring. She always sits and stands the same way. She looks like she is painfully enduring her royal life. She wanted the fame, but not all the work that came with it. But honestly I don’t find any of the royals interesting. Well…maybe Harry.
I don’t think she is smart or clever enough to understand what she’s gotten herself into, and I think her mother and her husband take turns bullying her.
I think she has what she wanted, the position and the WAG lifestyle. The only problems? William does what he wants as always AND those pesky royal duties get in the way of her workout, shopping, vacation, and salon time.
In every coupling, at least one person works. William’s insistence that both of them not work is bizarre. If he doesn’t want his wife to work, then he needs to get off the couch and get out there and work! That will shield the both of them from criticism to some extent, I think. That they’re both hardly working amplifies the perception that their family’s approach to life is laziness.
I think she might get it right if she tried a bit more often. I think she should wear knickers more often and she’s good to go if she was serious lol
Wow, that’s quite a turnaround in opinion.
I guess flashing your ass doesn’t qualify as a mistake. I know this has been discussed ad nauseum but it is indeed a mistake she constantly repeats.
Even more seasoned royals born into the life have made mistakes so it wouldn’t be shady to admit she’s made them. I think William is more responsible than Kate, but William followed Charles and Kate followed Diana. Only one of those figures was utterly beloved worldwide and it was always going to be an impossible act to follow. As someone mentioned, her only choices are to follow his example or outshine him the way Diana outshone Charles. I think she’s as lazy as him, but if he did more she would follow his example.
Honestly, my first thought when I read this was ‘I wonder how they bribed Ingrid?’ I know she’s been a mouthpiece for a long time, but I feel like going from ‘spoilt and rich’ to ‘hasn’t made any mistakes’ is a big leap.
She did get her certificate in moon shining 90 times at University – you have to be quite a character and have a lot of gumption to do that. I mean that is very brave or foolish if you consider she wanted to impress Wills.
Starlight, Sex and booze have always been the draw for Chopper!!,
But why doesn’t William work more/ harder? Its been drilled into men, in our culture to still be the bread winner.
Aristocratic boys have always been raised very differently. The ones who actually believed in duty, work, and taking care of the people over whom they had power were a small minority. The higher their level, the more money and power they had, the worse they usually were, including to family. (Especially wives — better to be the wife of a farmer or middling merchant than of a duke.) I guess people expected better of this generation, and Harry certainly seems to be better. But then Harry’s not the heir, and therefore wasn’t raised with the extreme deference and adoration usually given to heirs, particularly male heirs.
Power corrupts. Who knows what kind of person Will would have been if he hadn’t been born to his extremely high state. Being born to too much money and power really is a curse, in that it almost always warps the core of a person.
a person can be so terrified of failure that they won’t even try, I’m just not sure that’s Kate’s problem