The ‘stinging’ advice the late Queen gave Kate Middleton,
As a fresh-faced member of the Royal Family, the Princess of Wales turned to Prince William’s grandmother for guidance on navigating the Firm.
The Daily Mail’s Richard Kay described the two as sharing a ‘grandmotherly’ bond – with Kate describing the Queen as ‘a gentle guide’.
And like any grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II was not afraid to point out areas in her granddaughter-in-law’s life that needed attention – even before Kate and William were engaged.
Royal correspondent Katie Nicholl wrote that the Queen was concerned about Kate’s lack of a stable job and the number of holidays she was taking in her book, William and Harry.
She wrote: ‘If Kate was not with William at Balmoral then the couple were skiing or holidaying on Mustique.
‘Kate was there so often the press dubbed her Queen of Mustique, a title that had previously belonged to Princess Margaret.’
The royal author noted that while Kate and William were enjoying island life, people back home were struggling through the recession.
Nicholl wrote: ‘Such frivolous displays of wealth were unpalatable to the Queen.
‘While the rest of the world speculated that an engagement was on the horizon for William and Kate, the Queen believed an announcement should be postponed until Kate was settled in a career.’
One insider told Nicholl at the time that ‘it is Her Majesty’s opinion that if Kate is one day going to be William’s consort, then she needs a proper job.’
MailOnline reported at the time that sources close to the Queen said she was acutely aware that William’s public image could suffer if his girlfriend were not recognised as a working professional in her own right.
‘The Queen has had conversations with a few trusted friends about how to tackle what is being called the Kate problem,’ a senior aide told The Mail on Sunday.
‘On the few occasions the Queen has met Kate, she has thought she is a nice enough girl. But the Queen has admitted she has no idea what Kate actually does.
‘Privately she is very concerned about what the repercussions could be if Kate is not in a stable job as and when William is ready to propose.
‘Although they are not yet engaged, it seems more likely than not that Kate will be a Royal bride one day, and the Queen is of the opinion that Kate should be working.
‘She believes in a modern Monarchy and feels very strongly that the Royals should be leading by example.
‘That’s one of the reasons the Queen is so fond of Sophie Wessex.
‘She was a hard-working career girl before she married Edward and she still works hard carrying out lots of charity work, despite raising a young family.’
In June 2008 Kate was working for her parents’ mail-order company, Party Pieces.
She quit her job as an accessories buyer for Jigsaw at the end of the previous year and announced that she wanted to pursue a career as a photographer.
When she left St Andrews with a 2:1 in art history, Kate attempted to set up her own children’s clothing line as a subsidiary to her parents’ company.
But she was forced to close it before it launched for financial reasons.
At the time, she sought advice from William’s best friend, internet entrepreneur Jamie Murray Wells, and said she did not want to ask her parents for money.
She started working at Jigsaw, which is owned by her parents’ close friends John and Belle Robinson, who let William and Kate take a holiday in Mustique.
But Kate quit the job after less than a year.
According to Nicholl, the Queen’s words ‘stung’ Kate.
But this advice could have been the making of her.
The Princess of Wales now consistently comes out top in opinion polls alongside her husband William.
In a recent YouGov poll Kate Middleton was ranked the second most popular member of the Royal Family, just behind William.
In 2011, 162million people across the globe watched William and Kate tie the knot at Westminster Abbey.
She is now viewed as a hardworking member of the Royal Family who dedicates significant time to her royal duties, including attending public engagements, visiting charities and supporting her causes.
Speaking in Channel 5’s Kate & The Queen: A Special Relationship, the Daily Mail’s editor-at-large Richard Kay explained how the pair ended up with a special bond.
‘The Queen grew to trust Kate. I don’t think she really trusted anyone on first impression, we’re all performing the same show, the show is supporting the Queen.
‘But with Kate and the Queen it grew deeper than that, there was a real grandmotherly affection between the two’.
Ingrid Seward, royal expert and editor of Majesty magazine echoed his comments, adding: ‘I think the Queen saw her strength and saw that she is a caring person who had this amazing affiliation to duty.
‘But with Kate and the Queen it grew deeper than that, there was a real grandmotherly affection between the two.
‘I think Kate would have really appreciated the kindness and attention the Queen had given to her, and she knows better than anyone how busy the Queen is. She put time aside to make Kate feel appreciated.’
Kate is believed to have formed a stronger bond with the late monarch after welcoming her three children and made a great effort to involved Her late Majesty in the children’s lives.
India McTaggart, royal correspondent at the Telegraph, added: ‘Catherine has said the Queen was very supportive of her as she was undertaking her first engagements without William. I think she influenced her by showing her by example.’
While the Queen was initially skeptical about Kate’s work ethic, she proved herself to be a hardworking and loyal member of the Royal Family.
It has been reported that Kate is ‘modelling’ herself on the late Queen as she nears the throne.
The young royal knew that there was no better example to follow than the late Queen’s, viewing her as a mentor.
‘Catherine has learned by observing,’ the Queen’s biographer Sally Bedell Smith told PEOPLE.
‘She knows what resonates. She will have absorbed a lot from this Queen.’
Kate Middleton’s pre-royal CV
Before joining the Royal Family when she wed Prince William in 2011, the future Queen worked in a series of surprisingly normal jobs.
Ahead of going to university, teenage Kate took on some ‘back breaking work’, earning a pittance as a deckhand in Southampton.
And after leaving education, she famously worked in fashion, taking on a role as an accessory buyer for high street brand Jigsaw.
Her final foray into the world of work ahead of joining the royals was working for her family business, Party Pieces.
‘Back-breaking work’ as a deckhand in Southampton
One of the first jobs the now-Princess of Wales is known to have worked at sounds like a surprisingly hands-on role for the royal.
Ahead of going to university in Scotland (where she famously met her husband-to-be ), like many others her age, Kate took on low-paid work.
Over a four-month period, she worked as a deckhand at the Ocean Village Marina in Southampton.
One of the skippers Kate worked under at the time, Cal Tomlinson, spoke to author Katie Nicholl for her biography Kate: The Future Queen.
He said: ‘It was back-breaking work. Kate mucked in and was very professional. She fitted right in, although she did stand out for being so pretty.
‘She spoke well, she was very attractive, and she an air about her. She was competent and confident but very unassuming.
‘She was polite and respectful to whoever was in charge of her and neat as a pin. She was never wore any make-up; she was naturally beautiful.’
A ‘terrible’ waitress during her university days
These days, Kate has the means to be waited on if she likes, but this was not always the case.
Like many other students, Kate took on some waitressing while she was at university.
It was during the 2019 broadcast of Christmas TV special A Berry Royal Christmas, that the princess opened up about her hospitality experience to show host Mary Berry.
During one segment, Mary prepared a non-alcoholic cocktail, which she then passed to Kate to take over to guests.
This prompted Kate to quip: ‘Reminds me of my university days when I did a bit of waitressing.’
When Mary asked if she was good at the job, Kate responded very honestly.
She laughed, and replied: ‘No, I was terrible!’
First foray into the world of fashion
After leaving university, Kate landed a job with a major fashion chain.
At the age of 24, she took on a role as an accessory buyer for high street brand Jigsaw around the end of 2006.
Speaking to confirm the appointment, a Jigsaw spokesperson said at the time: ‘We can confirm that Kate joined our staff two or three weeks ago as an accessory buyer for Jigsaw and Jigsaw Junior. We can’t comment any further.’
According to reports, the future Queen had already helped out the brand at a fashion shoot, where she ran errands, fetching cups of tea and snacks.
When Kate was hired by Jigsaw, it was owned by fashion tycoons John and Belle Robinson – close family friends of the Middleton’s.
At the time, the appointment was described as a major coup for Jigsaw, having the woman who was expected to marry the future king among its staff.
Although she left the brand in 2007, to go and work for her family business Party Pieces, the Princess of Wales still appears to be a fan, and has been spotted wearing items of its clothing in recent years.
Working for the family business
After leaving her role at Jigsaw, Kate went on to work for her parents’ business, Party Pieces.
The party decoration supplier is owned by Kate’s mother Carole Middleton. It was founded in 1987 when Carole was looking for inspiration for her daughter Kate’s fifth birthday party.
She realised there was a gap in the market and set up the company that offers time-pressed parents an easy choice of imaginative parties for their children.
While it may have started as a tiny operation working from the Middletons’ kitchen table, it is now a much larger business employing some 40 people and working internationally.
The brand’s best-selling Party Pieces Collection features products such as plates, napkins, cups, hats, balloons, treat stands and decorations.
All three of her children have worked for it at some point, with Kate joining in 2007, after leaving her job at Jigsaw.
Her role, according to reports, included working as a website designer and photographer for the business.
She left Party Pieces in January 2011, ahead of her April wedding to Prince William.
A royal aide confirmed her departure from the company, saying she was planning to ‘concentrate full-time on preparing to become a member of the Royal Family’.
