Duchess Kate and Prince William are pretty much the weirdest people in the world. I’m hard-pressed to name any other public figure or celebrity who consistently makes such strange and nonsensical decisions. So, we know that Will and Kate dropped everything to go to Mustique for a two week island vacation. Kate even worked ahead of the vacation, because someone finally told her that would look better. By all accounts, Will and Kate were really looking forward to their luxury villa and spending time with Kate’s family and all of that. While the Mustique trip is an annual event for the Middletons, this year’s trip was special because Carole was throwing herself a huge 60th birthday party. And that’s how Will and Kate justified it too: they wanted to celebrate Carole’s birthday, that’s why they arranged their schedules that way. Except it turns out that Will and Kate didn’t even GO to Carole’s birthday party. For the love of God…
It was a major bash marking a big birthday – so it’s no wonder eyebrows were raised when Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge missed the party that celebrated her mother’s 60th on Mustique this month. Although William and Kate were staying at the £14,000-a-week four-bedroom Villa Rocina with her mum Carole, they decided against going to the biggest night of the family’s holiday – a beach party that Mrs Middleton co-hosted with Colin Fenn, the multi-millionaire co-founder of clothing brand Fenn Wright Manson, who was celebrating his 70th.
I gather the joint party wasn’t originally planned but when Colin and Carole realised they were both throwing parties, they hastily decided to team up for a huge Pirates of Penzance-themed night attended by the island’s residents, including Rolling Stone Mick Jagger.
But it seems the idea of mingling was so daunting for expectant Kate that she and William raised a glass to Carole at the villa but then stayed behind when she headed off to party with husband Michael and their other children, Pippa and James.
My Mustique mole says: ‘The party went on into the early hours with amazing cocktails and fireworks. Most of the locals were there but they were told William and Kate wanted to stay below the radar. Guests were asking after them.’
By all accounts Pippa did an excellent job of flying the family’s fun flag – dancing the night away in a yellow bikini top and floral ra-ra skirt. Kate, seven months pregnant, barely left the villa throughout the stay, though William ventured to the beach in a golf buggy.
‘Kate doesn’t want anyone getting a picture of the bump,’ said my source.
I can sort of understand why a pregnant woman – especially a celebrity or public figure – wouldn’t want people to get photos of her bump when she’s in the early months. But when you get to the sixth or seventh month of your pregnancy, who really cares? I mean, the jig is up. You’re knocked up and you have a bump. It’s not shocking or scandalous or even all that newsworthy. Who cares if people see – or even take a photo of – said bump? And to miss out on this huge birthday party, especially when it’s the main reason for the vacation, just because you don’t want to be seen while pregnant? That’s so… weird.
Also strange: the Middletons paid for this vacation. They invited Will and Kate and then Will and Kate tapped out on the birthday party? Rude! Don’t get me wrong, if Kate is tired, so be it. But go to the party and toast your mom and then leave early. And why spend ALL of that money on this luxury Mustique vacation with tropical beaches and shops and parties and spend the entire time holed up in some dark corner? I’m telling you, they’re just weird.
As for Will and Kate’s weird, nonsensical inability to show up at the pre-BAFTA party at Kensington Palace and William’s inability to show up at the BAFTAs as BAFTA president, Vanity Fair had a bit more about it – go here to read. Apparently, Reese Witherspoon was really perturbed that Will and Kate didn’t come to the KP party and she was asking about them loudly. And sources were dishing about William’s radio silence on the BAFTAs too, with one source telling VF: “There were a few sniffs about William in particular not being at the awards. It’s not like he was too busy, he had just returned from a two-week holiday to Mustique, and the party was at his palace!” WHY ARE THEY SO WEIRD?
Last thing: Kate did a video message for Children’s Mental Health Week.
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.
Kudos for sticking up for children but it would take her like 5 minutes to memorise the thing, the whole reading cues thing just seems so sloppy and unprofessional. Plus she stops whenever the line ends which does not necessarily coincide with where the sentence ends, so it’s choppy. Come on Kate, you have everything going for you, just put in some real effort in something worthwhile for once in your life.
Ah, this is the reason she stayed ninety minutes at the private visit! So, half an hour for visiting and one hour for the three thousand takes it took her to “nail” the vid. I guess this is the alternative to speeches? Since she can’t handle speeches?
As for the party…. I don’t know. Don’t care, really. I get the sense that their marital harmony is quite weak, hence the weird looking behavior.
Exactly! She spent 30 mins with those kids and the rest trying to perfect the fakest posh accent through a 3 min speech. How many takes did it take for them to get what they got?
She made a PSA for an important issue and did a decent job at it. I think her presentation has improved quite a bit, and I’m not going to pick every little bit apart. So what if she used cue cards. If it makes her feel more comfortable to have them there, big deal. The most important thing is to get the message across, and she did.
I don’t really care why she did it, but she did and it could help some people. I see nothing wrong with that.
The reason why she’s doing it isn’t because she suddenly develop a touch of altruism, and I think that ‘s very important. No one should have to twist this woman’s arm to do anything. She should be doing these PSAs every year for every charity she “patrons”. She’s going on 4 years of royal work and the only way to get her to do anything is to shame her in the press. That’s ridiculous. That’s why the message is being lost. People know a PR stunt when they see one. And if she put as much effort into her charity work as she does with her looks, she would be able to do these things without much thought. She would be a natural. Instead, it’s been almost 2 years since we’ve seen her speak for one of her charities.
We disagree. I don’t care if she had to get talked into doing it (if, in fact, she did). What I care about is that she did a credible job delivering the message. It’s not grand oratory, I’ll give you that, but she spoke clearly and I understood exactly what she was saying.
People do public/community service as part of their sentence for a crime. Should we sneer at that because the people were forced into doing it?
bluhare
I’m there. The message is done. Good.
I’m a bit bitter at us though. We have come to expect so little that whatever she does gets a golf clap.
She wore panties? Gold clap.
She taped a short message? Golf clap.
She visited a charity for yachts before her vacation? Golf clap.
What irks me in this whole thing is Kate and William need lots and lots of security and staff around them. The cost is not covered by the Midds or William at all. To go and stay inside all the time defeats the purpose, right?
Meh. Unremarkable.
FLORC, I understand that; honest, I do, but we all say we want Kate to do more and be more involved in her work. So how can we possibly criticise her for doing this? I totally get what you’re saying; I had a few moments of wondering who had to talk her into it and for how long, but that is not very charitable thinking from someone who’s said that I want her to do more and get more involved. So how could I possibly say anything bad about doing exactly that? I can’t. So I think it’s great she did this PSA, and I hope it means that she’ll be stepping up to the plate more.
Bluhare
I agree with you. She’s doing something for her charity so no criticism on the end result here.
End of it all though Kate appears more as a talking head. She does as she’s told. To praise that seems so wrong.
I’m on the fence about this one and I understand both arguments. I also want her to do more, but the key word is *more*. She’s doing the bare minimum of what is expected of her; and, she’s been doing that for a while. I’m not sure if I can give her a pat on the back for that. It’s actually somewhat brilliant, now that I’m thinking about it. It’s a good cycle: barely working; people complain; she works; people still complain, but now there’s ammo for people to say “look she doing SOMETHING, what else do you want?” And now, people can make the “damned if she does, damned if she doesn’t argument. Thus, let me phrase it like this: I do not simply want Kate and William to *do* more, I want them to *care* more (which would undoubtedly translate into more work). Admitted, that’s probably a losing situation.
Honestly, I don’t think her heart is in it at all. Her next public video will be in a year or two. I know I’m not very charitable with regard to Kate, but I don’t think she deserves the benefit of the doubt. I agree with Original Mia on this.
We can’t project our own feelings onto other people. Wanting Kate to care about something we do isn’t realistic. But if she walks the walk, eventually she may even start to understand and empathize. You’ve got to start somewhere. I might become very disappointed with her if this is all she does and then goes back to shopping. But everything has to start. And if she’s starting to work more I’m going to applaud it not condemn it.
I agree with everyone!
It’s a good cause, a really good cause.
She is MUCH MUCH MUCH better now than she was with her first PSA. Hugely improved.
She should stick with filmed messages. She comes off much more professionally than she does in her live speeches.
All that said, it’s still pretty apparent that she’s not a natural at this. But you know, she’s made an effort to improve and it shows.
Suze!!! I’ve missed you. Have you been at Diplomat School while you’ve been gone? 🙂
Unfortunately, Kate has shown a pattern in the past. Some engagements, some videos, and THEN SHE DISAPPEARS. I don’t expect this to change. I am glad that there are some optimists out there though – and I hope they are right!
Well she is going to disappear here shortly to have the baby, but I take your point and hope that’s not the case this time, vava.
She’ll disappear until January 2016.
So basically Carole’s party was a always going to be a sponsored event, by the clothing manufacturer…a Freebie party for the Carole sponsored by the other dude, but co hosted by both.
Also the Middleton’s didn’t pay squat for the accommodations, they were a borrow from their friend, the dude with them and his wife in the photos from earlier stories..the head of a Swiss hedge fund (Nico’s boss) and owner of properties on Mustique
Nothing with this family is ever as it seems financially.
JMO
Mick jagger, Pippa in a yellow bikini top and a ra ra skirt? This the worst fan fiction the DM has published yet.
What’s a rara skirt? I can only think of Ra-Ra-Sis-Boom-Bah. And I don’t think Pippa was cheerleading.
Edit. That skirt is awful, but Pippa has worn that style before.
This pair is just useless.
Bleck, I don’t blame them. A pirate birthday party? What are they, 12? The Middletons are so pathetic. And Pippa coming in a bikini top and skirt – there’s always one woman who uses any remotely beachy theme to come in a bikini. It is strange that they wouldn’t at least make an appearance at the party and then leave if she was tired, but it sounds like a big, drunk, juvenile, theme party. And that in my judgey assessment.
The theme sounds stupid. PIppa’s actions sound annoying. But it was Kate’s mother’s party. My mom would be so sad if I couldn’t walk the hundred yards to her party. Just show up and leave in half hour.
I hear you, and I would never intentionally hurt my mother either, but maybe they had a little celebration before the party and her mother didn’t care that she didn’t come. Maybe she wasn’t feeling well, or there was some circumstance we don’t know about. She seems many things to me – lazy, wimpy, etc., but she doesn’t seem mean. She’s very close to her family. I think she probably had a reason not to go and William stayed home with her.
@GoodNamesAllTaken
Good point, I just assumed Carole was sad and Kate was being rude. But you’re right, I doubt Kate was intentionally being like that.
There are rumours in German press, from someone that Kate and William were having fights the entire holiday. Maybe they were holed up hashing out things. LOL 🙂
Rumours are Carole had already also had a smaller private party back at the Berks, Midds Manor and that’s one another reason Uncle G said he wasn’t bothered when asked about the island party.
Anyway still I agree, one of them could have stuck their head in the party for a moment and said hi, happy birthday and even greeted the island peeps for a second.
William nor Kate strike me as the warmest people. They seem to do just what’s needed or even less! Lol
Someone
I believe that. Kate and William fighting. You know why? Because they’re married! Married couples fight. We do. I think vacations are no exception. I’ve found I will bicker more with my husband while on vacation.
To automatically claim they didn’t fight or never fight is to not understand this couple is made of 2 people. 2 married people. They absolutely fight. If you don’t think that you’re believing an image and not a reality.
Exactly. The party sounds horrendous to me and I certainly would not have wanted to attend a party like that at 6 or 7 months pregnant. Taking pictures of the bump a problem or not. I stayed tired at that point in my pregnancy (much more so than in my first trimester). Still, it was her mother’s 60th, so they could have just made a brief appearance.
Ugh – is all I have to say for Pippa.
but who drank the special non alcoholic drink Carole had designed especially for Kate???!!! She went through all the trouble to make sure her daughter wouldn’t be left out… how rude!
I know! That guy created a new drink just for her- How he must feel.
I have been to several pirate themed parties. Some on islands and some lasting days. They were Amazing!!! Though I doubt it was anything like what the Midds had. We made our own costumes, had pirate fights on row boats claiming territories and well… I think Kitten would have never left. It was that type of party.
I’d imagine Carole and others looked like glamemd out pirates and wenches. While any member of the Rolling Stones already looked like pirates.
Until I see pics, I just don’t buy the pirate theme. Or Mick Jagger. Or any of it. In the absence of photos leaks, the DM can cook up a most ridiculous party story . It’s not as if the Midds will deign to deny it.
Maybe it’s just me. Maybe I’m just not fun, or a I don’t know the right people, but I feel like rich people always want “themed” parties. Probably because wealthy people are always trying to outdo one another. Everyone I know just likes to show up and have fun.
A themed party can be superfun though. Some years back we threw an Indian themed carnival party at the student college where I lived and it was amazing! Indian food, indian themed cocktails, homemade travelposters, tigerheads of papier maché, Bangra pop, a Sikh drummer and some amazing costumes. One girl had made her own Ganesha costume complete with several pairs of extra arms.
We made our own saris from beautiful glittering fabric. It was an absolute blast!
Haha, I don’t usually like Reese Whiterspoon all that much, but in that VF article it says that at the pre-BAFTA party she “was walking around the room saying, rather loudly, ‘Where’s the Duke and Duchess? They do live here don’t they? Are they late? If I open this door, will I find them?’ ”
That is classic! Go Reese!
Yup, That cracked me up. So Reese.
P.S. rumours Katie Nicholl is not happy with the Cambridges lately.
Someone
Can you elaborate on why KN isn’t pleased? I’ve been working a lot more and digging myself out of the snow. I’m not up to date.
Wait. Isn’t she the one who’s supposedly on good terms with the family?
Green
She’s the official or unofficial biographer of Kates.
Ha! She sounds like a pain in the a** –this is something a true brat would do, but it is funny.
The only Brats are the 2 people who have everything in the world on a platter and cannot get their disrespectful arses 50 yards out of their flat to go to a party that isn’t even ‘work’ in the proper sense.
As soon as Queenie goes im swapping sides and becoming a dyed in the wool Republican. And I suspect most of the Country will aswell…
I feel ya, misstee. I’m not a Brit, but I agree they should both do more, a lot more. I didn’t comment on their behavior this time because it’s getting harder and harder to come up with something different to say about 2 people who don’t seem to care how bad they’re making themselves and the BRF look. I SMH everytime I think of PW getting an audience with the POTUS in December, like he really belongs on the world stage when, in reality, he can’t even push himself and his wife to work more than a few hours a month.
The more I think about it, what more of a contrast could there be? A spoiled manchild who has been handed everything – including the opportunity to do good on a global scale – and fails. Vs a man who started from a humble background and earned his way into one of the most powerful positions in the world.
Kate is fiddling with her hands throughout the video. It is a little distracting, and it makes her look nervous. Maybe she is?
She’s a hand talker. Always has been it seems.
She is, but I think it was nerves too. There were certain parts where it looked more like the hand movements of someone that was uncomfortable.
yes, and it’s very annoying to watch.
There must’ve been some aspect of the party that freaked her out — like she didn’t want someone snapping a pic of her surrounded by bizarre decorations or sponsorship signage or something kooky.
That’s what I’m thinking, though they probably should have just stayed home.
I’m sure Carole was fine with the decision, who knows if they had an intimate family dinner or lunch to celebrate her birthday. Poor press for not getting a bathing suit picture of a pregnant woman.
How can she be hiding when there is a picture of wearing a white coat since she returned from the trip.
Let me get this straight. They go to an island for vacation, but Kate doesn’t want to be seen with a bump. Well, that could have easily been solved by keeping their freeloading butts at home and not costing the taxpayers all that money in security and lodging. And William doesn’t understand the meaning of a commitment. He is the BAFTA president and with that comes certain duties. This was a preview of his reign. Sorry, UK!
PS: Why is she sucking her stomach in? She does realize there’s a baby in there. Right?
+100000
Agreed! If you don’t want your bump seen, don’t go on an island getaway. Jeez, go to Alaska or something where you’re covered in a bulky parka all day long!
I watched the video. Her accent seems strange in spots. What’s that about?
I’d say she had to amend her natural diction – hard to keep that up. It will probably take her years until her voice is seamless.
I doubt she sounded ‘common’ before…
There is a article in one of the papers or magazines during the dating years, that said even The Middleton’s including Carole, use to laugh at how each visit home from St.Andrew’s , Kate’s speech became posher and posher sounding.
There use to be a video in the Internet where Kate is saying something to photogs and her voice was a lot less posh sounding.
That said, I think her voice sounds less posh and clipped here in this video, then it did in the engagement interview, where her voice sounded totally FAKE.
It was said at one point Kate was sounding more posh than the aristos she hung out with.
Also, why her speeches and public speaking in general was so strained. She is struggling to speak in a very unnatural way.
For me when speaking another language the emoting, diction, enunciation is the worst. You can know what the words mean, but when trying to relay that thought to another in an unfamiliar language you need to focus on a lot of stuff. Memorizing words and repeating them is the easy part, but not even half way there.
Kate has been reinventing herself into (imo) what she thinks she should be in image. The voice, the clothes, the hair, the body. And she’s stuck on this.
I remember hearing years ago that Kate had taken lessons to make her accent sound more posh and less middle class. Changing 20+ years of speech habits can’t be easy to keep up.
She sounds like an American imitating a generic British accent.
It seems as though there are so many social rules in England that reflect one’s “status”. It’s different here in America, because although there are accents that come from living in different parts of the country, we all have one way of speaking correctly; which in my speech class in college, was Merriam Webster’s guide to pronunciation. I use “educated” enunciation – one listens to one’s professors, and the language becomes one’s own. It’s the enunciation used over the airwaves….
But posh, for reason of poshness? It seems like such a bother to worry about so many things – so many protocols…so much posturing for an effect of raising one’s profile? (“I am better than you” – listen to me talk is sheer silliness).
There are a lot of social rules and prejudices on how you speak in England! I studied in Yorkshire where they speak with a distinct burr – yet people with a Yorkshire accent are often perceived as low-class hicks. Just one example.
I don’t get it – wasn’t the birthday the reason for going? I do believe the part about the bump as she is very self-conscious and always wants to be seen looking her best (i.e. weight-wise). Plus, last pregnancy, she went into hiding several weeks before the birth and I’m sure it wasn’t simply because she had no “work” scheduled. Hope it’s not a girl for the child’s sake. Passing on her body image issues….not good.
Wow- even if I was super rich I’d have a hard time dropping like $30,000 a week on a hotel! (14,000 pounds, & I’m Canadian)
They didn’t pay for it, it’s a loaner from the hedge fund guy with them in photos ,who owns properties there.
Right.
Not much was paid for by the Midds in this vacation.
Ugh, they’re such leeches!
My family owns a vacation house that is regularly loaned to friends because there is no point in it sitting empty when we are not using it and we are not interested in renting to strangers. It never occurred to me to call my friends leeches for accepting my offer to use the house.
Where’s your house, she asks interestedly? 😀
Upstate New York on a big lake
I agree. WhI goes to a luxury island and stay inside a villa most ply email even if she didn’t find the party inappropriate. Also she is holding her stomach in the whole time in the video. To me it seems Kate have issues with her pregnant body and that’s why she wears non maternity clothes, goes into hiding in her last trimester and reason for her above odd behaviour.
This video is much better then last one.
I think it’s so interesting that Kate’s developing an aversion to cameras. She never seemed to have one before. William, yes. Kate, no.
And I agree about the video. Much better. It looks like she’s taken some lessons.
I think An Old Prude is right – Kate avoids cameras when she’s pregnant, which is sad on many levels. Bce you’re right – she hasnt had that aversion before, except when she was last pregnant
Yeah, her vanity gets to her a lot.
If she were smart, she’d be milking her pregnancies for all she’s worth. They’re good to use as excuses as to why she can’t be bothered to help her charities more often than once a year. And she would get more photos in the tabloids which would remind the public how important she is as a progenitor to the future line of British royalty.
Because really, her uterus is her key to being useful and important. She’s not going to base her legacy on her charitable works. It’s going to be through her pregnancies.
She is pulling some weird faces there. Yeah, could have gone to party for your mom’s sake, toast, mingle for 5 mins and then leave. These two!!
Ewww………..that video. So forced and choppy. But, I guess better than her speeches, but that’s not saying much.
The Lamebridges have hit new heights of selfishness. I think Kate is so vain and self-obsessed that unless her hair is perfectly blown out and sausage curled and she’s plastered with make-up, she’s terrified of having her photo taken.
Unless they were being so insufferable as to be told not to attend the party, it looks like they self-ostracized because they didn’t want to mix with a bunch of “commoners” they didn’t know. So much for being “just regular folk”. And the fact that Willnot couldn’t even be arsed to attend the Baftas is doubly damaging.
Oh, and if they really were fighting I’d say it’s because they actually had to spend a lot of time together in close quarters. They’re not used to it other than to procreate.
Sounds like there is trouble in that relationship or someone has been chucking his toys outta the pram about the PR around the party and holiday. He has to know that her family are feeding the paps.
I still think this marriage won’t last – either he will divorce her to run off with someone else (maybe Jecca Craig) or she grows a back bone and leaves him because of his cheating. He is too much like Charles to be a good husband or father.
Rumours are in Some European press that PW and Kate fought the entire holiday.
I don’t belive this marriage will last either, no matter how highly the press touts it as perfect and no matter how hard Carole and Kate clutch.
Just a few months ago the DailyMail columnist said Kate was angry with him, because he went to some party without her and one of his old friends some blonde friend was flirting with him all night.
I think Kate will put up with it. They’ll do the time honored separate lives thing, rather than divorce.
Bluhare
Agree. Kate has hung on this long. She might yell at William for his poor treatment, but she won’t leave.
William and Jecca are friends so they must also be lovers? Grow up.
Megan
They dated and for 2 weeks were thought to be engaged.
On top of bonding on a cause they are both very passionate about the foudation is there.
Your statement seems naive to think there’s no chance they fooled around and might still. And to attack a poster by telling them to grow up shows you have no legitimate ammo to cast down the thought.
We’ve said before, Jecca is the one he trusts and confides in. She doesn’t compromise herself for him, unlike Middleton.
It´s nice that she finally did something! 100 Points! Her “speech” is ok, but i see no improvement… and that´s no surprise her appearances are too rare. Without going out and trying she will never improve.
And i don´t mean just her speeches or her “better than you-accent”… her facial expressions need a little bit “help” too. Everytime she tries to look moved and sad her left side, especially the eyebrow moves higher and higher.
+1
I don’t see the big deal…
What exactly are they after in life? Non-stop shopping and spa appointments?
Apparently waste of time and money vacations also.
I bet the Middletons never question them. Oh you want to sit at home staring at the wall instead of attending my party? Okay.
Reese: “where are they? Don’t they know who I am??”
“I’m an American Citizen!!”
Ha!
On one hand, it’s good that Kate did something for one of her few charities. It only took several years, but hey. It’s like praising George Bush for not falling down while walking and eating a pretzel at the same time.
On the other hand, it took several years for her to do a PSA video lasting less than 2 minutes in which all she had to do was read what someone else wrote.
And I say “years” because I don’t remember her ever having done any PSAs before.
Her posture. If she hadn’t had a pregnancy bump, she would have toppled over face forward. The longer she talked, the droopier her eyes got. Must be tiresome trying to remember how the elite talk and then mimic them, read words, and look into the camera all at the same time.
At the beginning and end of the video, her hair is slightly in her face. Why? Is it because she wasn’t 100% into doing this PSA video? In the close-up shots, somebody got her hair out of her face.
Yes, like people upthread said, it’s choppy. She goes full stop in the middle of sentences then starts up again as if the rest of the sentence was the beginning of a new one.
Every time I hear her talk, I think that she’s listening to the sound of her own voice more than thinks about what message she’s conveying. She sounds like her priority is on sounding ‘proper’ and posh. I think she’s very vain and egotistical, and this is why she’s never going to leave William no matter what he does.
Anne
She’s tapped messages before. I think 1 was around Christmas?
I would give her a pass on the public speaking if she did it more. The only way to improve is to practice. Getting rusty is a real thing. If she did this more often I bet she’d be really great at it. She could read lines, not leave her home, and make herself appear more accessible and caring.
It’s pretty ideal.
The sucking in of her stomach is too distracting.
I don’t think she needs to wait to do more public speeches or videotaped PSAs in order to get her practice in. She can practice reading anything out loud in her spare time in order to improve her speaking skills, like what actors do.
And since it’s far and few in between her public speaking engagements, if she had any gumption to be professional in her work, then she would have kept practicing during her down time. And with all this down time she’s had, she would have had loads of practice time.
How long have they been married? And speaking is something she hasn’t got down pat yet?
I think her lack of enthusiasm to be a professional at her job is what keeps her from becoming better than an amateur at this . There are high school and college students on school radio stations who do a better job at public speaking than this 30-something year old woman.
Let’s face it. She’s not into this job other than what she looks and sounds like. That’s about it for her. If her sausage curls are curly, her skirts are short, and she sounds posher than everybody else in her age group, then in her mind, job’s done.
Anne
She does appear to only show apathy for her position/platform. It’s more than a wife. Many forget that. I think William’s level of apathy to his role is also awful and justifies Kate’s apathy.
I wonder if she really knows what her role is. Her family ad William have been said to be her world. Everyone else is employed. If anyone will tell her what needs to be done it’s her family and they don’t.
A part of me thinks she doesn’t know she should be doing more. And another part thinks she doesn’t want to do more. Maintaining her physical appearance, shopping, decorating, etc… full time job to someone who hasn’t held a real job.
I just doubt anyone has ever approached her and said she’s seen as lazy.
Instead she reads or hears how the dress she wore sold out. She’s inside a bubble and doesn’t care to know if there’s an outside to that bubble. imo.
Doesn’t really work like that . I couldn’t read my homework to the class in 12th grade , I couldn’t do a presentation in college and I sure as hell can’t do them now . I start out ok and then get faster and faster until somebody tells me to slow down and then I start to cry . I’m 32 years old .
hannah
You can’t compare yourself to Kate.
Kate not only has every support to overcome this hurdle at the ready. She’s also been fine speaking to crowds for years. She would have had to developed the Anxiety and not worked at all to improve it.
My goodness. You all are so incredibly negative and mean. Who cares if or why she didn’t attend her mother’s party. I don’t see the big deal.
As for the recorded message…can’t we agree that at least it was done and is out there shedding light on the cause? This woman is not an elected official. Most of the time I feel that this website just picks on certain people to the point where the complaints eventually become contradictory. It’s getting worse and worse and making my little lunch hour gossip session so much less enjoyable.
I don’t care if she didn’t go to her mom’s b-day party.
I think the significance of William not attending is that he seems to have been using his MIL’s b-day celebrations as one of the reasons he couldn’t fly home in time to attend the pre-BAFTA party he’s supposed to have been hosting and which took place in the building he lives at and of which he’s the Royal patron.
As for her PSA, yeah, good for her. She took a nearly 3-week vacation and mustered up her energy to do a less than 2-minute speech. That should be good enough for anybody. I think that was worth the millions of dollars of expenses for her over all these years. YAY!!!
blauffer
I agree with some points. It’s all in the name of the website though.
Though let’s take a step back. The majority of comments are not attacking her for the psa. They just aren’t. Maybe her lack of work and these types of messages. Her accent has been a side issue for long before her engagement and the tummy sucking in is distracting to the eye. Outside of that I think you’re reading something you don’t agree with and blowing it into something worse. I could be wrong. You are lumping us all in the same group though. We aren’t “all so incredibly negative and mean.”
And Kate is not an elected official. She instead married into a role she can only be divorced out of. She has a platform and position to represent her charities and the country/Queen/commonwealth/brf. It’s nothing to scoff at.
In return she lives a life of large wealth and luxury.
It’s the image of her rare work appearance. Like she was told to work instead of wanting to that people are critical of. In fact, 1 time there was actually an official statement put out saying Kate is not being punished by having to do a certain event because everyone and the press and her pr knew it looked like that.
I make the same argument on another thread here. A woman who uses private funds lives her life in a way that doesn’t intrude on mine so why give her a hard time with hate here. I just don’t visit that thread anymore.
Although, difference between her and Kate is Kate’s money is not earned. It’s entitled by marriage. Now those here that do pay those costs have more say than I.
Outside of that we’re gossip blog visiters.
And when it stops being enjoyable simply ignore.
blauffer, I agree with you. The comments are nasty. Give the girl a break. We don’t live her life and if any of us had the chance would we be any different? Probably not!
I’ll you what, if I were in her position, things would be very different. I’d work 5 days a week, go to events, make speeches, stop by the food banks, etc. I wouldn’t act like Kate at all. I. Would. Work.
Also, I’d ditch the high heels, dress appropriately, and not make the goon faces she’s so famous for. Plus, I’d probably try to get along with the press as well.
Go Vava!
Daughter of Jean
You’ve said numerous times we’re all horrible. Even when we’re complimenting her. Because it’s not gushing with praise are we not nice.
And many of us work and volunteer. We improve ourselves and the lives of those around us.
So, we’re already doing a better job.
Please don’t assume because she’s doing the bare minimum that that is all anyone can do.
I don’t think you would ever speak ill of Kate even if everything we say is confirmed. She’s a glorified image and not a person at this point.
She is 33, not a girl. She chose this life, and that meant a life of public service From Day One. DoJ, I resent the implication that you think most of us would spend our days stealing from the taxpayers and doing F*ck all. Maybe that is how you would spend your time, and that tells us a lot about you.
Many of us would be happy to have the financial freedom to dedicate ourselves full-time to charity.
Florc, I have never called anyone on here horrible. I have said the comments are nasty. Big difference!
@nota, well said.
Daughter of Jean
Thank you for the correction. I carried over horrible from the comment you agreed with. Although, the difference between nasty and horrible needs to clarified. I’ve cross checked how words would be defined in the given context and there’s barely a difference. They’re both insults to character.
If you can explain the difference to me please do. They seem nearly identical.
Horrible people make nasty comments. Nasty comments are made by horrible people. It’s almost as if you can’t accuse 1 without the other tagging alone.
And the timestamp on your comment means you must have glossed over Nota’s reply to you. I think it’s a solid comment that deserved a reply.
In your comment it seems you thought nonw of us could do better than Kate. She’s directly countering that. I would counter if I felt my opinion and stance was justified.
Kate and her mother almost certainly had an arrangement or in agreement that we know nothing about nor is it our business. Otherwise she and William don’t owe anyone on that island or in the press any explanation as to why they did not attend the party. As for why Kate did not go we just do not know and the article states that an unidentified source claims to know that Kate did not want her bump to be seen. Really reliable right?
Imo
I’m with you. It seems like a fluff piece that fills in the blanks. Though it is the DM and they always bury the lead in a story. Meaning there’s often a direct purpose to their stories regarding royalty.
What do you think it might be? And also I would be interested in any theories you might have about Katie Nicholl? I have always seen her treatment of Kate to be passive aggressive at best and I never understood why they trusted her to begin with. Interesting.
Imo
I’m not too great at reading between the lines. I’m not sure on this recent article, but i’ve found a story quietly breaks during these articles or just after, but gets swept away.
I look at KN and thought she hated Kate with a passion. Then something changed and she was over the top gushy about her. So sweet it came off insincere. I think she’s more passive aggressive towards William now.
The Midds puzzle me. Trusting Tanna too.
If they used this “must go because of the big birthday” trip as an excuse to get out of work (ie. BAFTAs), then yes it is the taxpayers business.
I don’t detect an ounce of sincerity in her phony video messages. Think about how many people SHE could help with the money she spends on one outfit or any one of their “luxury” holidays. And they are SO dull.
You make a good point. There’s something galling about a woman who’s just come back from a very expensive vacation–paid for not by herself, but by others, including the taxpapers (for RPOs)–making a PSA asking the average person to give–time, money, whatever. Hmm.
There’s a story about William throwing a fit when their staff wanted to watch a movie that he had already watched on some movie night. So they changed the movie to what he wanted, and then, he didn’t even attend the movie night. If that is true, then it just seems like this “bailing out at the last minute” after making a big fuss about something seems to be a thing. That’s why I’m side-eyeing a bit that they didn’t attend the birthday party, but even more so, not attending any of the BAFTA events. Why get involved in any of it, if it’s not interesting enough or you don’t care about the other people involved?
Not having any kind of follow-through seems to be a bit of an issue, and it really shouldn’t be in that position.
Yea.
It was Skyfall. The staff that they claimed not to have got an xmas party and a movie. Bond was huge and was a big part of the Olympics opening ceremony. The staff waited to watch it together. Right before the screening that day William cancelled the Skyfall screening for Twilight because he hadn’t seen that one.
Then William left before the movie started and the staff was MAD! They all left and went to a pub to openly vent their frustration.
Tone deaf defined.
The petulant princeling strikes again. 😉
If it is true then it is very bad form indeed and it isn’t particularly smart to piss off your employees when you’re paranoid about your privacy.
More and more, William is coming off as an insufferable prat whose bad manners and general petulance no one has dare to rein in.
ArtHistorian
This is one of those occasions where it’s easier to find a source confirming. It was huge news, but most outlets glossed over it. Though it was covered and was never said to be false at all. They just buried the story.
The story was covered here. Search the dates of January just after the olympics and i’m sure it’s easy to find. Also, the comments held a few links if memory serves to the sources. Or old twitter tweets.
Palmer and Tanna jumped on this while KN played it cool.
Well, then it just proves that he has no manners at all!
Treat the employees well and then they won’t grass on you if you’re a public person valuing your privacy. Sounds like he’s both rude, inconsiderate and just downright dumb.
I don’t dislike Kate. I wish she would work more – and I’m actually very happy that she did this PSA – because regardless whether she is sincere or not, the message gets out. This is a subject I feel very strongly about and I care less about her motivations for doing it than that it has been done and that it might have an effect.
William, however, is a different matter. Not only does he seem to want to evade the public duties that his position entail, he also uses uses strong-arm tactics with the press (Amanda Platell anyone!) and uses his position to get cut corners with the jobs he want (I’m thinking of the eyesight demand for the RAF that didn’t fulfill but a loop-hole was found for that). That he is rude and inconsiderate to his employees is just the final drop before the cup runneth over. How you treat the people who you work with or who work for you says a lot about you as a person – and this adds just another facet to what’s beginning to look like a somewhat unpleasant character.
This is the first story that makes me like them. God, they’re normal. It’s her MOM. She’s finally allowed to say , “No thanks, I just need an early night, I feel exhausted.” Leave Kate be.
Does anyone know the story of how William and Kate started living together with friends during university? I’ve always wondered how that came about.
Does she speak oddly or is that normal for her class/regional accent? It’s so slow and she makes so many pauses. And she is so breathy. That might be from the pregnancy. I’ve no experience on that front but I’ve heard you breathe a lot heavier while pregnant.
Really? I’ve never heard of that and I’ve met a lot of pregnant ladies.
Her accent and how her family speak are night and day. She has changed it.
And to hear her speak before the pregnancy she wasn’t breathy either. I think it’s because she’s pulling in her stomach every chance she gets. She’s breathing heavy maybe because she’s sucking in air, and holding it while she speaks. Then releasing and taking in another breath quickly.
I’ve had lots of friends who have had difficulty catching their breath while pregnant, particularly in the last stages. Not sure why – i’d guess its something to do with the baby taking up some much room and compressing everything – hard to fill with air when you’re filled with baby.
You’re right–the diaphragm is being pressed against. If Kate would sit up straighter, she could alleviate some of the pressure and perhaps breathe better.
Olenna
I’m thinking this is more from Kate’s poor posture, but also from sucking in her stomach. This has been noted when she’s not pregnant. She hunches a lot, and holds her breath while speaking. It also is noticed when she exhales and breathes back in to hold because it could be a long pause mid sentence.
I doubt her pregnancy has little to do with this since she has always done this. Her married life has this well documented.
Florc, I agree she has the worst posture. IMO, she could actually look poised and almost stately without wearing some of those ridiculously high heels if she’d just straighten her back and shoulders. The breathing thing needs work and professional coaching. But, as someone up-thread mentioned, she’s seems more concerned with her accent and diction than presenting a relaxed, professional image.
@ Stephanie
She tries very hard to have a very posh upper-class cut glass accent which goes far beyond the usual “received pronunciation” which the privately educated often display. She sounds fake.
It is hard to prove what her “real accent” is like because there are no videos of her speaking from before her marriage. The only video evidence is from after her marriage when she started this ridiculous accent.
You’re right; it sounds artificial and, to my ear, sounds like it comes from another era. My opinion has always been that she is trying to imitate the Queen’s speech. As many have said, even William’s speech has a more modern, natural sound to it.
Here’s a rare video of her speaking before the engagement. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYVrJLoM0Ac
Also, a couple of years ago, I saw an old video (sorry, no link) of her and Pippa coming out of some venue and she was pleading with the paps to leave her alone. There was not a trace of the upper class accent in her speech at that time.
Most people could give a rat’s ass about her ‘bump’.
I just watched the video with the sound off & thought I’d comment on the various ‘sucking in her stomach’ comments. That’s really just talking, breathing, & diaphragm work, made noticeable now because she has a bit of a belly. That’s it, simply the human body at work.
Pregnant Duchess Kate on Carol’s birthday party would have been a social highlight for Carol. She must be miffed that her own daughter bowed out of her mommy’s birthday party after mummy supported her so much.