William and Kate: engagement and relationship rumours and musings 2009

[Lumutqueen]

I think that Kate is no more "human" than the rest of the royal family.

Kate isn't a member yet.

If William and Kate do marry, it's his choice, of course, governed by what the Queen and Prince Charles think, but considering some of what other royals have married, she could be much worse.

I'm sorry but whoever William choses as his bride, i'm sure the Queen and Prince Charles' opinion will make very little difference on whether he marries said girl.
And "some of what other royals have married" care to elaborate?

 

[Iluvbertie]

Except that without the Queen's consent (or Charles' if he waits until his grandmother passes) he can't marry unless he makes his marriage a political matter but seeking the permission of the Houses of Parliament and waiting a year.

Unlike the rest of us, aged 27 or more, he needs the formal consent of either his grandmother or Parliament in order to contract a legal marriage.

 

[Sereta]

IMO Kate showed her true colours during that roller disco event. And it's not about her falling and spread eagled on the floor as I know that wasn't her fault. Although if you're going roller skating you should have enough sense to know there's a good chance you're going to fall! But it was reported that "she didn't feel William was paying her enough attention and wanted to show him what he'd be missing when he went off to RAF" that he'd just signed up for. William even asked her not to go to it but of course she went anyway. This screams 'rebellion' to me. She should've listened to her boyfriend, she could've saved herself some embarrassment and negative press. The whole thing came across as so attention-seeking especially with the short shorts and all. It reminded me of something Diana would do when she wasn't happy about something and would rebel in a public way. (Not to turn this into a Diana discussion!) I can't imagine Mary, Maxime, Mathilde ever doing something this and in fact, they never did!
In the several years they've been together she's only made two attempts at fund raising (also the charity boat race) and both events came across as attention-seeking photo ops, and ended up with negative press. You don't have to make yourself look silly to help a charity!
Also when they broke up in 2007 the way she was courting the press by constantly going places she knew she would be photographed.

The British people don't want another Diana type of situation!

 

[Ella Kay]

I don't remember hearing that William supposedly asked Kate not to help with the charity fundraiser. Where did you hear that, cd255?

 

[Marsel]

IMO Kate showed her true colours...

With due respect to your opinion, I would just like to draw your attention to one fact: the "she didn't feel William was paying her enough attention and wanted to show him what he'd be missing when he went off to RAF" line was presented by the media, not Kate. Neither newspapers, nor any of us have any means of knowing what Kate Middleton feels, thinks or wants.
That might have been the reason for Kate's participation in the roller disco event and/or her rather eye-catching attire, however the media has a wonderful way of presenting their thoughts and opinions as someone else’s.

As for William's alleged request, I am not sure it ever happened. Remember that some of both William and Kate's closest friends and even relatives took part in the event: why should William object to Kate's participation? I have never been under the impression he objects to any kind of party or fun anyway.

I have to agree with your opinion about Kate’s behaviour following the 2007 break up though.

 

[Sereta]

Marsel I think that was her reason for participating in it. That's my opinion. The whole thing came across as very attention-seeking. And it doesn't matter if some friends attended, William did not attend. I think that speaks volumes!

 

[Ella Kay]

Wouldn't William have been busy with military duties at the time, though?

 

[Sereta]

He hadn't started with RAF yet. And if he wanted to go he could've made the time to do so. Even military get time off.

 

[Sonjapearl]

He hadn't started with RAF yet. And if he wanted to go he could've made the time to do so. Even military get time off.

Yes, but they don't get days off easily like you and I would. The military is very strict.

Also, don't you think maybe Kate wanted to prove she could do something independent from William?

And I agree with Marsel who said basically, don't believe everything you read in the papers. Since no one really knows what is going on, there is only speculation. The media is making their speculations fact.

 

[Ella Kay]

That's so true, Sonjapearl. Almost everything we know about this relationship, good or bad, has to be taken with a grain of salt, because it's been filtered through media sources.

 

[Sereta]

It's not that difficult to get time off if you want it even in the military.
If that was the best she can do to assert her independence then that's pretty sad. Like I said you don't have to make yourself look silly to help a charity.

 

[Sonjapearl]

Even if she did look silly, do you not think she deserves a second chance? I mean, that roller skating event happened last year, and you're still using it against her.

It makes me wonder how some people reacted to the mistakes Diana made early on. For example, when she wore that low cut, black gown during her engagement to Charles, did people attack her then, and came to believe she was a lousy choice for a princess?

 

[Lady Ann]

I thought when William turned 25 he no longer need the Queen's consent to marry. Please correct me if im wrong ...Of course he would ask for approval but just out of respect at this point. btw after all this time my opinion is if the Queen or PC did not approve she would have been long gone.......IMHO

 

[rmay286]

All these Kate-bashing videos/sites have made me think of something.

By letting William "wait" as long as possible to get engaged, the royal family is probably hoping to avoid the situation that happened when Charles and Andrew married. They both became engaged a few months after dating, and their fiancees were immediately thrust from obscurity into the public eye, and well...we all know what happened. The media was able to instantly paint a picture of both Diana and Sarah, they both believed the image the press created of them, and as a result Diana started manipulating the press and Sarah had a breakdown when the media decided to tear her down.

In the case of Kate, though, the media doesn't have any opportunities to define her. She doesn't appear much in public, doesn't give interviews, and doesn't have an obvious career path. So the media, and people who follow the royals, get impatient and feel like Kate "owes" them something. Diana and Sarah were out making public appearances and giving interviews a few months after entering the public eye, and yet here's Kate who's hardly thrown a scrap to the media in the last seven years. Maybe that's why people are starting to get so impatient with her and make these nasty videos...because Kate isn't giving people what they want (ie., an interesting "personality" to watch or a wedding with William!)

So obviously the weddings in the 80s happened too quickly, but I'm wondering if the royal family is now going to discover that a really prolonged courtship has its disadvantages, as well. For whatever reason people have become impatient with Kate and don't care for her (why I don't know because I agree with Zonk that I find Kate boring, bland, but I have nothing negative to say about her) but if William does eventually marry Kate, is she going to be able to shed that "Waity Katie" image? Or are people going to say, "Yeah...that Princess Kate...she does her royal duties now but she's not much of an asset to the monarchy, she's the girl who had no career and waited around for William for 10+ years before he married her!"

 

[Zonk]

Honestly, I think if William and Kate do get married, and she starts performing tons of engagements (both solo and with William) and is shown to be a hard working royal (and there is no scandals regarding her family, vacations, etc., people will most likely forget that she didn't work prior to her marriage. But of course there will people who will continue to dislike her (and that is their right). I can see it now, William and Kate have married for ten years, they have three kids (all girls) , she performs 250 solo engagements a year, and 200 with her husband, and people are still talking about what she did in 2008!

But I totally agree with rmay226, that perhaps this is an experiement of sorts. But I like to add Sophie into the mix. Sophie and Edward had an ideal courtship from what we could see. But of course, marrying the fourth son of a monarch is a lot different than marrying the heir to an heir. The BRF and the powers that be saw how everything went down with Diana and Sarah (and are keen to avoid that) and everything regarding Sophie almost mirrors Kate. Edward and Sophie dated for years (although they both had careers), and Sophie was pretty much invited to some but not all royal family events (certainly not official ones). I am thinking that they are trying to model the long term relationship of Sophie and Edward but minus Sophie's career. Let's face it....her career did cause some problems for the Wessex's both before and after their marriage.

Either way, if William and Kate do marry, I do hope she follows the work of Maxima of the Netherlands and Mary of Denmark (they both work very hard IMO) for their respective countries.

 

[Ella Kay]

I thought when William turned 25 he no longer need the Queen's consent to marry. Please correct me if im wrong ...Of course he would ask for approval but just out of respect at this point. btw after all this time my opinion is if the Queen or PC did not approve she would have been long gone.......IMHO

You're right, Lady Ann. Because he's older than 25, William could legally marry whomever he pleased, without asking The Queen's permission, if he notified the Privy Council and Parliament did not express disapproval of the marriage. But he'd have to wait a year after notifying the council to actually marry. There's no year-long wait required if he simply asks for and receives The Queen's permission.

I agree, though, if a marriage between William and Kate would potentially not be consented to by either HM or Parliament, they wouldn't still be dating. I don't think that they would want to run the risk of a marriage crisis with William, if they can help it. The marriages of three of The Queen's children have been problematic enough already, IMO.

 

[4Pam]

Kate may not have a career at the moment but you never know what she can do in the future. She could potentially surpass the other crown princesses... Kate will be good for England and if she doesn't marry William good for her bc she'll be left in peace.

 

[Iluvbertie]

I thought when William turned 25 he no longer need the Queen's consent to marry. Please correct me if im wrong ...Of course he would ask for approval but just out of respect at this point. btw after all this time my opinion is if the Queen or PC did not approve she would have been long gone.......IMHO

AsI said in my post he needs either the consent of the Queen or of Parliament.

To get the Queen's consent, he asks, she gives, he marries.

If she says no he can then approach the PM to take the matter to Parliament, wait a year and if no vote against it he can then marry.

But... to have to take it to Parliament immediately raises the issue of why hasn't the Queen given her consent? What is there about the potential bride that she believes doesn't make her eligible.

Unlike you and I William, and all other descendents of George II (except those descendents of princesses married into other royal houses - which technically includes William but as they have continued to do so since Alexandra married into the BRF and no one has challenged that practice in a court of law I am not going to argue that point again) need the consent of EITHER the Queen OR if over 25 and the Queen won't give consent, then Parliament - and a wait of one year.

William can't simply decide to marry. He needs consent from somewhere.

 

[Lady Ann]

Thanks Iluvbertie and Ella kay, I was not sure how that worked. I guess it would be easier just to ask for HM blessing not that I ever thought he would marry without it in the first place. Like I said I don't think it would have gone this far if there was not already some approval form HM already in place. Just my opinion ....

 

[mrsbugman]

I agree that Prince William may be taking it slow. He knows better than us/most the perils of a bad royal marriage. As does Prince Charles, who may be giving some "take it slow" advice. And I also agree that if Prince Charles and/or Queen Elizabeth didn't like Kate, or saw a disadvantage in the dating/marriage she would have been gone a long time ago. No one, outside of the press, wants Prince William to have a bad marriage. Well they probably don't want a bad marriage for Prince William. Just one with lots of news and pictures.

 

[Sereta]

< ed Warren >
She doesn't inspire me to want her as my future Queen.
I stated I didn't want this to turn into a Diana discussion. Diana was only 19 and it was her first public appearance. She may have shown a little cleavage but she hardly looked silly.

Zonk let's not get ahead of ourselves. She doesn't even have a ring on her finger. < ed Warren >

Edward and Sophie's relationship was different. They had a stable ongoing relationship, not an on/off one.

Americans can be blase' about it since it doesn't affect you. But whoever William marries will be representing us (Britain) so it's pretty important to us that he get it right. We don't want any more attention seekers in the royal family.

< ed Warren >

 

[Sonjapearl]

I'd figure most Brits would want their future King to be happy after all the misery he's been through.

 

[karla64]

Daily Express | Blogs | Richard Palmer | Why Gordon Brown may delay Prince William and Kate's wedding | Exclusive opinion, news and views from Daily and Sunday Express's top writers

 

[Sereta]

Another article from the vicious press accusing William of ruining poor Kate's life if they break up. So pathetic! I wish the press would stop trying to shove Kate down our throats! The yellow press may gripe if they break up but the 'people' don't care!

Is that really the consensus with the British public? I'd figure most Brits would want their future King to be happy after all the misery he's been through.

Of course we want Prince William to be happy, but if he marries the wrong type of girl it would make him unhappy because of the problems she would cause him and his family. We don't want to witness another Diana situation.
Of course in the end it's up to Prince William who he chooses.

 

[Lumutqueen]

I agree I do not want a woman like Kate as my Queen. But if she makes William happy, I can just hope she does her job to a certain degree of honour.

 

[hibou]

If Kate had wanted to court the press she would have given an interview by now, like Prince Albert's companion. Kate has never given an interview. She kept her mouth shut during their break-up. In terms of her fashion style, you can't please everyone, but I have not seen her in an outfit that I would call inappropriate for example a way too plunging neckline or back. She always seems to wear the correct type of outfit for the occasion. As for working for her parents, she is lucky to be able to afford to have the job. William can not have his cake and eat it too. It is the only way for her to be able to accomodate his schedule. We are not privy to what they have agreed to, but they both seem fine with the current status. The Queen and certainly Prince Philip would have put a stop to this relationship if they felt it harmed the firm. JMO

 

[Dierna23]

I suppose she has never given an interview and never will give an interview because she knows that it would be the coffin nail for her relationships with the RF.

 

[Ella Kay]

Also because she genuinely cares about William and doesn't want to hurt him by revealing private information to the public, I hope. Having a loyal partner is a huge asset for a royal, I think, and so far Kate seems to be that.

 

[Skydragon]

Is that really the consensus with the British public? I'd figure most Brits would want their future King to be happy after all the misery he's been through.

I don't believe that is the general feeling with the British public. I can't say I have ever heard/spoken to any of the apparent Kate haters. Some of the media may be trying their best to present Kate as someone the British dislike but as we all know, the comments section in many areas is heavily moderated to ensure it reflects the view 'they' want to put across.

Many of the nasty and spiteful comments posted against her on some sites, are IMO, purely the bile from a few jealous young women.
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British Prime Minister Gordon Brown might force Prince William to wait to wed his longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton.

Brown makes William and Kate wait - Monsters and Critics

 

[Lumutqueen]

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British Prime Minister Gordon Brown might force Prince William to wait to wed his longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton.

Brown makes William and Kate wait - Monsters and Critics

If they were getting married next june, surely an engagement announcement would have been made by now?