Save the date! Prince William and Kate Middleton pushed for an earlier wedding date (suspicious?) and they got it. Buckingham Palace announced this morning that the royal wedding is set for the rain-slogged month of April – Friday, April 29th, to be more specific. The wedding will take place at Westminster Abbey. Prime Minister Cameron has already declared it a bank holiday!
Royal officials said Tuesday the couple chose the date because they wanted a spring wedding. It also the feast day of St. Catherine of Siena, whose name Middleton shares.
Queen Elizabeth II married at the abbey, the 1,000-year-old church in central London where British kings and queens are crowned.
William and Kate decided against celebrating their nuptials at St. Paul’s Cathedral, where William’s parents married in 1981.
[From HuffPo]
Meanwhile, we still haven’t heard for sure what designer will be doing Kate’s wedding dress. But that’s about the only thing we don’t know at this point – People Magazine, Us Weekly and Star Magazine are all running Kate on their covers this week. Here’s People Mag’s online excerpt:
Newly engaged to Prince William, 28-year-old Kate Middleton has been the portrait of poise and grace. But friends tell PEOPLE in this week’s issue that the future princess wasn’t always so self-assured.
As a young teen, she was shy and awkward. “She wasn’t really confident,” says a former classmate. “The poor girl, we felt sorry for her.”
Now, of course, she is set to become one of the most famous women in the world. As anticipation mounts over the announcement of an impending wedding date, those inside Middleton’s circle say she will draw on her quiet inner strength.
“While she’s not the sort of person who bursts through the door and grabs people’s attention, she very much has presence,” says a friend. “She draws attention to herself in a very unobtrusive way.”
So far, say observers, she’s proved herself a quick study on the royal stage – despite little-to-no formal training. “There’s no charm school for princesses,” says Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine. “It’s sink or swim.”
[From People]
Ugh, that was boring. I also don’t believe that Kate had/has low self-esteem, at all. I think she knew what she wanted and made herself into what Prince William wanted. Speaking of Kate’s only goal in life, The Daily Mail has much better coverage of all things Middleton. According to their sources, William is worried about Kate getting all depressed and lonely, so he asked his uncle Edward’s wife Sophie (Lady Wessex) to “talk” to Kate about royal pressures. This is considered “therapy” in the UK (LMAO). Also, Kate won’t be a “working princess” right away, because… you know:
Her only official duties – including opening ceremonies and attending charity events – will be on the arm of her RAF pilot husband in the immediate future, St James’s Palace confirmed.
Kate will not get her own office and will instead share staff with William.
A spokesman said last night: ‘Prince William wants to initiate her properly into the job, so at first she will not undertake any solo engagements. If Miss Middleton is free before the wedding, she may join the prince on engagements but that decision will be taken on a case-by-case basis.’
[From The Daily Mail]
So… that’s about several things, in my opinion – she and Will are going to try for a baby very quickly, which is nice, in my opinion. He made her wait nine years, people! Second reason for limiting her “working princess” routine: William treats his parents’ marriage as a total and complete case study for a royal marriage that didn’t work, ever. In Will’s mind, part of his parents’ problems stemmed from the fact that Diana immediately became a much bigger “star” than Prince Charles, and that Diana eclipsed everybody in the family. I think William wants to try and ensure that Kate doesn’t steal his thunder. Which is a jackass move that I think will backfire – everybody pays more attention to the princesses. We like the clothes and the jewelry and the fairy tale. Kate got three magazine covers in America this week! If William thinks he can keep Kate in her appointed position as equal to or less than himself, he’s sorely mistaken.
Magazine covers courtesy of CoverAwards. Additional photos courtesy of PRPhotos.
I cant wait to see this wedding. I was 9 when Princess Di and Charles got married. I stayed up all night.
I wish the couple much joy and happiness.
Ha, I told ya. Too many dates associated with bad memories in the summertime, it would have been a minefield. And something tells me they don’t have to worry about initiating this one, she’s a charter member of the bow and scrape club. And still no one has caught on that it was her mother who sussed out where William was going to school and what he was going to study and not only managed to get her daughter into the same school at the same time with the same major, but into the same dormitory as well!
Diana eclipsed everyone else in that family for a reason. She had charisma, personality and genuinely seemed to be interested in real people who weren’t members of the aristocracy, or as they should call it by now, archaic-ocracy.
I’m not seeing how what William is doing is trying to ensure Kate won’t steal his thunder. Maybe she doesn’t want to do a bunch of appearances on her own so early in their engagement/marriage. Even though she’s been in the press for years I imagine it would still be daunting to be thrown into that all on her own so soon. Maybe that’s what she wants.
It’s very wise for Kate to accompany William to his events first, to get her feet wet, before starting to do solo events. Also she’s going to be innundated with invitations and pressures to be patron of every charity in the country, so that’s going to take some time to sort out.
William seems to be very sensitive to the problems his mother had adapting to royal life and is making a terrific effort to not let that happen to his own wife. Bravo for him!
Also, Kaiser, you’ll be happy to know that Kate has promised to “Learn quickly and work hard!” She said it in her sit-down interview with William.
Uhm the reason why Charles and Di’s marraige failed is because he was in love with another woman when he proposed. As long as Wil is genuinly devoted to Kate than they have a head start on their parents.
I think Kate will eclipse Will too. In this new age of modern media i’m sure we’ll be getting pics of her doing princess business (whatever that may be) all the time. Shes a woman. Women like to talk about other women. Men dont care about this royal gossip stuff at all right?
btw I think its hilarious that Eva Longoria still didnt get the cover will all her vengeance plans
I’m getting married April 30th. Naturally, I’m thrilled about this :/
I agree with PJ – It seems like William is trying to protect Kate and spend time with her. They will be busy enough in the future with seperate engagements, they may as well have the early part of their marriage to be together and enjoy each other.
I am obsessed with this wedding. I am totally taking that day off work to watch!!
@Samigirl
Congrats on your wedding date! How nice you and your man can enjoy your engagement and wedding now that the royals will be diverting the attention of the photogs lol. Congrats seriously.
My point being that all the other celebs will have to delay their announcements until the royals have left the scene.
@mln: Spot on. His parents’ marriage was doomed before it ever began.
@rita, Thanks! And the point you make is excellent! No paparazzi taking pix of my wedding, which will undoubtedly cost less than her dress.
I am currently visiting with my future in-laws in Virginia, and I saw the headline and said “If this bitch picked the 30th, I’m going to have throw a b.f.” When I announced it was the day before, they started crying from laughing too hard. Ahh well, what can ya do?
Well, Kate better not be sheltered for too long after their marriage. I predict there will be plenty of “workshy” princess grumbling. It’s already started over at the Daily Mail. Diana got right to it, accompanied by morning sickness, an unloving husband, and with no university degree to boot.
If Kate is not going to be working, how can she eclipse William? Just asking.
Now this is all we are going to hear for the next 5 months.
I can tell Kate, she is no, and never will be another Diana, no matter how hard she tries. Prince Edward’s wife was billed as a Diana 2.0 and we hear nothing of her these days.
Sorry, I think you’re way off the mark with Prince William. He has never shown signs of possessing a massive ego. He comes across as supportive and sensitive to Kate’s needs and her future.
Its obvious he’s ensuring she’s not overwhelmed by her new role. In his and Harry’s minds the media had a hand in destroying their mother, he clearly doesn’t want history to repeat itself.
Since everybody seems to be projecting THEIR feelings onto William and Catherine, I will do the same: In my opinion William does not and never has wanted to be in the spotlight. He HATES the paps because he believes they murdered his mother. He has shied away from royal duties for all of his adult life and he loves being in the military way up in Wales.
I believe he wants to continue being in the military and continue living in Wales for as long as he possibly can and then, when he absolutely has to, he and his new wife will begin their royal handshaking/touring the provinces duties and William will not care one whit if Catherine overshadows him. In fact, he’s probably praying she will. Right now, he just wants her to get use to everything and she will do fine because she is a mature and educated young woman and William is devoted to her and her alone. Unlike his Daddy, there will be no hanky panky with a royal mistress. Poor William lived through that with his parents and I don’t think he will do that to his wife.
That’s my fantasy and I’m sticking to it!!
Stronzilla, I have no idea what you are talking about. Catherine was already registered at the art college BEFORE William began school. William chose art history as an afterthought and did not like it at first and was going to drop out until his friends talked him into staying. Catherine’s mother had nothing to do with it. How could this woman possibly think Prince William of Wales would even LOOK at her commoner daughter? She would have to have had a MASSIVE ego.
I got this info from a TV special I just watched. I know you probably got your info from the Daily Mail so, really neither of us knows how or why these two people met.
@Strongzilla: Princess Diana also had a terrible personality disorder which made everyone’s life around her miserable. Yes she had charisma, and yes she could put on the appearance of caring about others, but in the end it was all about her. She couldn’t help it really. It was just the way she was wired.
Jeez! That seems soon. I guess the Royal Family is footing the bill-that was a smart move (and we know they can afford it). I feel sorry for the planners-can you say frenzy?!
Obviously they weren’t planning for foreign tourists, since that’s only the “shoulder season” (just before the fares go up for summer). Good for them.
@Crash-if you’re talking about the rumors that Diana had borderline personality disorder, see below.
Also, everyone agrees she was a good mother, something that would not have been possible with a “horrible personality disorder”. You can’t turn it on and off as you allude to: a personality disorder is your personality.
Depression-definitely. A grudge-most certainly. But I disagree with the PD, since the “evidence” was speculative and came primarily from one book written after her death.
Diana absolutely did not have a personality disorder. depression/anxiety MAYBE but definitely was not borderline personality. she doesn’t fall into ANY of the categories in the DSM-IV.
@devilgirl I agree in terms of charisma etc she can’t compare to Diana but the press isn’t going to ignore her like they do all the other drab royals because she is going to be queen eventually and married to the Prince and she is under 35.
Whatever their motivations for marrying I wish them a long and happy life.
So there.
Good luck kids!
Great thing in the Uk is that this is going to be a public holiday – 100x happiness!!
I think William is trying to help Kate avoid the awful time both Diana and Fergie had being married to princes. Just can’t see this as an ego move on his part.
I don’t think Wills has to worry about Kate eclipsing him. The problem with Diana and Charles is they were not a team and it was an arranged marriage creating a lot of discord. I think Kate actually loves Wills and they will work as a team. Even though I love to make fun of her for being waity katy I will also be glued to the TV. I was 5 years old when his parents married and I still remember it all today and how significant it was. But too bad they were the beginning of the end of the royal family. Guess in this case an arranged marriage just didn’t work.
@mslewis: I tried and tried to find the article where I read that the other day. It was some time ago, back when the press first got whiff of her when she had only recently begun dating him. I swear they detailed out how when Carole learned HE was going to St. Andrew’s she pushed her daughter in that direction too. Frankly, looking at Kate and her mother I have to say I wouldn’t have been surprised, maybe because she just seems to have been so determined from the get-go that she once she got her hooks in she wasn’t going to budge.
@Crash2GO2: not denying that Diana had some problems. Just would like to know how much the love triangle, arrogant treatment and inbred family had to do with exacerbating them. For all we know had she at least been able to feel like she was in a loving relationship for a few years she may have been able to handle everything else quite differently. But she got married at what, 19-20, she wasn’t exactly mature and had no experience with men and she had to deal with the knowledge of her husband’s mistress on her honeymoon, as well as the backlash from her immature husband and the rest of the royal family when her popularity overshadowed theirs. In my opinion this facilitated many of her psychological problems. It wasn’t until she finally got out of that marriage and moved on a little that she seemed to regain her mental equilibrium, though she did retain her bad taste in men. But she was a good mother, she loved those kids to pieces and I do believe she hit her stride when she was using her popularity to draw attention to issues that the rest of that family could have cared less about. That, to me, is part of the responsibility of being ‘royal’. It gives you a big voice and can help you effect change for those less fortunate. At least, if you want your loyal subjects to continue to cough up to cover your civil list hand-outs and pay taxes to maintain your royal residences and art collections.
I think Wills is doing his best to protect her. He learned some very sad lessons with his parents (like we all do) and wants to make sure she doesn’t become the hunted like his mother.
Speaking of Diana’s death, I located her exact cause of death in a random professional nursing journal last winter(damn-wish I had copied the article).
The article was about Princess Grace and Princess Diana and what really happened to them in terms of trauma and underlying medical conditions (Diana didn’t have any physical issues, Grace suffered a hemorrhagic stroke as she was driving down a mountain road).
I know the Royals didn’t release Diana’s autopsy, and, as far as I know, the so-called inquest (not particularly informative or effective-I suspect the Royals tied the hands of the investigators and witnesses) did not allude to her exact cause of death, either.
I understand the privacy concerns here; on the flip side, I believe that the Royals, STILL official fixtures of the government, owe a duty of transparency towards their subjects. None of this slight of hand we-can’t-disclose-this stuff. Besides, I suspect many of those mourning Diana would have abandoned conspiracy theories after knowing these facts.
Apparently the force of Diana hitting the front seat of the Mercedes lacerated her inferior Vena Cava, THE BIGGEST VEIN IN THE BODY, inferior because it brings blood from the lower extremities. She must have had immediate and massive internal bleeding-the only thing that would have saved her would have been immediate vascular surgery. But the odd French practice of stabilizing at the scene did her in-apparently she coded 2-3 times before they got her into surgery at the hospital. I believe it was almost two hours after the accident-by then, it was too late.
So much speculation on this side of the pond as to whether she would have made it with the typical “scoop and run” tactic used here-get them out of the vehicle, do the best you can to stabilize them, but mainly get then to the hospital where assessment and surgery can begin almost immediately. Time is absolutely the critical variable!
I remember the news here-broken arm and broken ribs-then she was reported dead. What a horrible shock, what a horrible loss.
@Realist. Thank you so much for helpful & factual information and shedding some light on what may have been the actual trauma. 🙂
This is so exciting! I can’t wait to see it!
Hey Samigirl! Congrats on your upcoming nuptials! I was an April bride myself (the 8th). Next year will be our 22nd anniversary. Even more exciting to me-our best friends just decided to get married in April, and have asked ME to officiate!
April is a GREAT month for a wedding…flowers blooming, beautiful sunny weather, everything looking new and wonderful.
@Realist: “Also, everyone agrees she was a good mother, something that would not have been possible with a “horrible personality disorder”.”
‘Everyone’ would agree that my mother was a good mother as well. And if she had died while my sister and I were young, we most likely would have canonized her as well. But as adults and parents we know only too well the scars we bear from being the children of a pathological narcissist.
It amuses me how so many people appear to genuinely believe that Carol Middleton schemed and plotted to have her adolescent daughter ensnare the second in line to the throne! The fact that they got together and have remained together – despite many vested interests trying to split them up is down to one thing – he loves her and she loves him.
How on earth was Carol Middleton, a middle class woman going to ensure Prince William was going to fall in love with her daughter? Hypnosis? Drugs? With all the intent in the world no-one can make another person fancy someone! William is from such a dizzingly different world to Kate it would be impossible to MAKE them fall for each other.
The whole premise that Carol stage managed the whole affair is ludicrous and I firmly believe it is predicated on jealousy and snobbery – I mean how on earth could William prefer her to the aristocratic beauties he was constantly exposed to? A staunchly middle class girl who knew very little about the customs and culture of the rarefied circles in which he, as heir to the throne, moved? Really it must be down to the pushy mother?? Crazy…
With regard to Charles and Diana, I think it takes two to make a crappy marriage. They clearly were ill-suited from the start. I know many see Diana as the only victim of their marriage, but IMO they both were unhappy and they both made mistakes with extramarital affair(s), but at least they both stepped up and did a wonderful job rearing their sons. My best wishes to William and Kate.
for REALIST:
Several trauma surgeons and internists were interviewed shortly after Diana’s death, and the consensus was that no one who was that profoundly injured should have taken 1 1/2 hours to be stabilized in a slow-moving ambulance. As one put it: you don’t stabilize someone who is bleeding to death; you get them to a trauma center and replace lost blood. Then you worry about stabilizing them.
Two things Americans don’t know about Diana’s death:
1) the streets of Paris are regularly patrolled by roving equivalents of ER docs. One such doc was close at hand when her accident happened and was there at the scene
2)the Alma tunnel at that time had NO GUARD RAILS–like almost all roads in France. I went through that tunnel many times in the 70s and always got the jitters. There’s also a big dip when you first enter the tunnel that can bottom out a car. The French have a very weird attitude toward highway safety.
That’s nothing, though, compared to the frighteningly unsafe mountain roads on the south coast. If there had been a guard rail in Grace Rainier’s accident, the outcome might have been very different.
These do-nothing people need to get out of my face already.
The Daily Mail quoted some wags as referring to the Middleton sisters, Kate and Pippa, as “the Wisteria Girls — fragrant and loving to climb.” Ouch. But it did take concerted effort and focus over many years to nail William.
@ Sara-I think we agree. We just have different portions of the facts. Weird medical practices, weird highway safety. Between the two of us, we’re on the same side. I am no surgeon, but I think they would have had to repair the large vessel before giving her blood transfusions. In any case, 90 minutes to surgery was unacceptable.
@Crash 2GI2@-if I had to choose parents between Charles and Diana for avoiding childhood childhood trauma, I would chose Diana. She had a warmth Charles, with his lonely childhood, could not even comprehend.
For the sake of what we carry into adulthood, I will recount my childhood. Part of the frustration of being a child in an unstable household is the inability to control what is happening around you. I had two alcoholic parents (Mom and stepfather) who I lived with most of the time, and a dad, 2000 miles away, who really fell apart after my stepmom, who was quite kind to me and never presumed to be anything but a friend and a source of support, died of breast cancer.
I am sorry that you suffered during your childhood;that is what your comment implies. Mine was not ideal either; in any case, I would never extrapolate my childhood experience to anyone else’s upbringing, especially someone brought up in the Royal Family.
Diana became a part of that family and all their traditions and incredibly rigid rules. And part of the fishbowl, probably more than any royal before her.
As a family, they were and are screwed up in ways we can’t even imagine; that’s why I hope Wills stays in Wales with Kate as long as possible. It seems like the Queen is being pretty hands off, which is great.
As for “everyone”, I guess I really meant the Prince of Wales. I remember he was visibly shaken when he went to pick up Diana’s body, and he insisted that his royal standard be on the coffin in travel and during the funeral despite the fact that they were divorced.
I won’t quote anything or anyone in particular at this point lest I be vigorously corrected. It is merely my opinion that Charles appeared to have a great deal of difficulty adapting to the role of single parent, especially at first. I give him credit at least for giving it his best shot. I think the boys have grown into decent men despite the very significant trauma of losing their mother in their adolescence. Can we all agree on that?
@Crash 2GI2@-in case I misinterpreted your comment and you were not raised in a household of narcissists but you were merely making a general statement, I still would not presume to diagnose Diana or extrapolate the effect her behavior had on her sons. I was raised in a household of narcissists- a recognized characteristic of alcoholics-and even if I conceded that Diana was a narcissist, and I don’t, whatever behaviors she exhibited while she was living were overshadowed by her sudden, horrific death in terms of traumatizing her sons.
Even 13 years after her death, we still all seem to have very strong opinions about the most recent Princess of Wales…
@REALIST: Thank you for the nice discussion! Yes, I do think the boys have turned out well. I’ll never forget Charles holding Harry’s hand during the funeral. He definitely broke the mold of monarch behavior with that one, and I give him a lot of credit for his efforts with the boys after their mother’s death. But after reading several insider’s commentaries on their interactions with Diana, I guess we will just have to agree to disagree on her.
I agree with Crash2GO2. I’m sorry about her death and my heart goes out to her boys, but there always seemed to be something phony and histrionic about Diana. She always complained about the paparazzi and the tabloids but they helped do her bidding by perpetuating the image of Diana as saint/victim. I always thought Charles married her so that he could seem relatively smart.
Love Prince Harry though.
Wow, if Carole Middleton was actually able to execute her plan, talk her daughter into it and keep it going for 9 years, then her family totally deserves the throne.
Diana’s engagement ring on display turned me off from the get go. And I haven’t looked back since.
Smirking Kate will find the ring will get heavier and heavier as time goes on.
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