Kate on Wimbledon: ‘It’s such quintessential part of the English summer’

Kate on Wimbledon: ‘It’s such quintessential part of the English summer’

Kate Middleton sat down for an interview about Wimbledon for the BBC documentary Sue Barker: Our Wimbledon. Kate spoke about growing up loving Wimbledon and how she missed Andy Murray’s 2013 win because she was pregnant.

Kate Middleton Wimbledon interview 1 s

Kate sat down with Sue Barker at Kensington Palace for the interview. The beige on beige room is decorated with an official photo of William and Kate from 2011.

Before the interview with Kate began, Roger Federer spoke about Kate attending Wimbledon, saying: “It adds even more prestige to the tournament seeing Princess Catherine there, Prince William, who knows maybe in the future we’ll see some of those people given* Wimbledon trophy as well, that would be beautiful I think.”

* I can’t tell for sure if he said “given” or “giving”.

Then the documentary showed Kate’s interview:

    Kate on Roger Federer: “Absolutely, he’s my mother’s heartthrob, I don’t think she’s going to mind me saying that. I think he probably knows that, too, but um… Absolutely.”
    On Wimbledon: “Growing up I, sort of, watched, obviously watched Wimbledon, it’s been very much part of my, sort of, family growing up. It’s such, sort of, quintessential part of the English summer, and I think it really inspires youngsters, myself, it inspired me, when I was younger, to get involved in the game. It hasn’t changed either, I think that’s what’s so wonderful. You know everyone’s still there in their whites, Wimbledon still looks as amazing as it did as I remember it as a youngster, you’ve got the strawberries and cream. And, you know, every time Wimbledon is on I’m there thinking, ‘Yes, I can do, I can do the same’. Get that racket. Sadly never, never the same results.”
    Who did Kate enjoy watching growing up: “I was really, sort of, taken by the legacy** of Agassi and Sampras, Ivanisevic and things when they would play and things like that, so that for me was I suppose my first memory of the players.”

** I kept hearing “Alexis”, but I think she’s saying “legacy”.

    Did Kate go to Wimbledon as a kid: “I did. My first chance at, sort of, going was queuing up on, I think it was a People’s Sunday or a People’s Monday I think, and being able to go into Wimbledon and, sort of, be part of what is so amazing there, the atmosphere there is incredible, whether you’re sitting on Henman Hill or being fortunate enough to be in, just wonder around the ground court it’s really, it’s hugely special and I was very fortunate that I did get through, it was quite late in the day, I’m not going to lie, but luckily play went on quite late in the evening so I managed to get to see some.”
    Kate’s favorite center court games: “The Ivanisevic game where he got the wild card draw because it was such a passionate game. That for me just shows you know the sportsmanship behind tennis, you know, and actually anyone has got a chance.”
    Does Kate get to meet players when she’s in the royal box: “Every now and again, that’s what’s so wonderful, you sort of bump into somebody as they’re walking courtside or to an interview or something, and then after games, um, I try and say hello to players. I can remember actually walking past, my father’s not going to enjoy this, but I can remember walking past Tim Henman actually from under one of the show courts and I was there with Dad and we got in and very excited, keeping a beady eye out on, sort of, who we could see, and I can remember walking past Tim Henman and we’d just seen Sampras play and Dad, as he came past, said very coolly, ‘Hi Pete’, and I was like ‘Dad, you can’t do that’. Utterly, I was mortified.”
    On Andy Murray winning in 2013: “It was amazing. I was very heavily pregnant with George so I wasn’t able to turn up… But even still, I, sort of, was there, sort of, saying ‘Maybe I could go, maybe I could’, and the doctor said definitely not. But no I wrote to him afterwards and said sorry for not being there, but, um, but huge congratulations. It was great seeing all sort of the flags and everything like that and how the public got behind home players. I find it hugely emotional, um, and I’m not even taking part.”

[my own transcription of the show]

I know I keep harping on Kate’s lack of enunciation when speaking, but as someone who transcribes what she says, it is very difficult to tell what she’s saying a lot of times because of lack of enunciation, run-on sentences, and not fully finishing a thought before starting a new one.

I find it odd what Kate chooses to give interviews about/speak in depth about. She’s willing to give an interview and be quite open about her love of Wimbledon, but not her other patronages? Anyway, it was nice seeing Kate give an interview. I just hope she gives more interviews about other patronages.

Kate wore her red Armani Collezioni Women’s Suit she debuted in April and her Mirabelle Lolita Earrings as well as a nude pump and her Cartier watch.

Kate Middleton Wimbledon interview 2 s

Photos: BBC


275 thoughts on “Kate on Wimbledon: ‘It’s such quintessential part of the English summer’

  1. Well done on transcribing Kate’s mumblings KMR!

    I guess that’s nice to see Kate is showing passion about something?

    As for Roger Federer calling her Princess Kate? Has he been reading People magazine?

    (On Roger Federer’s behalf I was mortified when I read that people were having table tennis matches with him at Pippa’s reception. OK, he may have offered to play but it did seem to make him sound like a “performing monkey”. Was he invited because what he is, a first class tennis player and celebratory, or was he invited because of who he is as a person?)

    1. Oh, Cathy, you know the answer to that last question! It’s the Middleton’s after all.

      KMR, congratulations, sort of, on, um, transcribing that, um, interview. It does not, sort of, make much sense because, um, Kate is, absolutely, I think I can say, um, inarticulate. Absolutely.

      This, at 35 years of age and after six years in the spotlight with access to all kinds of speech coaches etc. SMH. Note the references to only male tennis players.

      1. So she takes time to write a letter to Andy Murray for missing the final (as if he cares) but did nothing when she skipped the Irish guards, breaking a long tradition, just to get her hair done. This is how much she cares about her role. And this is a taped interview so she could have removed the comment and didn’t even think that this would look bad.

        1. Or maybe Kate isn’t going to Wimbledon afterall, as she doesn’t want to create an expectation that she will be there every year?

          1. Sorry KMR, I was being sarcastic there. I would be very very surprised if Kate missed anything at Wimbledon.

      2. LOL! It really is amazing! When I was younger, I was talking with my father, and after I finished saying something he said, are you aware how many times you said the word “like”? After that I really started to pay attention to how often I say filler words. I’m surprised that Kate (and let’s be honest William and Harry are big offenders in this area too though not as bad as Kate) didn’t work on this. If I were in her position, after my first interview I would be so embarrassed at how many filler words I used and how inarticulate I was that I would enlist someone to help me improve.

        1. I’ve been working really hard to stop using as many filler words as I do. and yes, William and Harry are also bad with the filler words and such.

          1. Not only that, Harry has used ain’t a couple times. It’s terrible! I don’t know if he thinks that’s how us normal people speak but it’s cringe worthy.
            And I don’t know anyone who uses that non-word and I grew up in Ok!

          2. Sarah, I used to read regency-era (early 1800’s) novels, and the word “ain’t” was an upper-class affectation at the time. Maybe Harry’s just being retro.

          3. I have as well. It’s much more difficult than one might think though, especially when I’m up in front of people and my anxiety kicks in.

          4. A writer/editor friend of mine was encouraged to eliminate her “fall back” words from her writing. Words that she was using in nearly every paragraph. She said it forced her to be more aware of her word choices and made her writing stronger.

        2. I use fillers but it’s because of my damn stutter. Sometimes I can speak and my words are fine but other moments I get flustered or I’m talking too fast or I’m around new people and I start stammering up the wazoo. It truly is like I’m punching a brick wall. Whether it be over sentence, a word or even a f**cking syllable and it drives me bonkers!

          Whenever my grandpa heard someone say, “You know” during a conversation, he’d silently count to himself thinking “1 you knows, 2 you knows…..” and then tell the person at the end how many times they said it! (Thankfully, he never did that with me.)

          But yes, I’ve noticed the filler words that William, Harry and Kate use/do. Beatrice and Eugenie don’t seem to have that problem. Also, the way Prince Charles speaks is lovely. You can tell he truly thinks before he speaks.

          P.S. I hope this is okay, but here is a picture of my donor mom, Candy, listening to her daughter’s heart beat (and lungs breathing) 21 years after her passing.

          https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19598684_10103720564346208_5563375981550701214_n.jpg?oh=74f3ef0a8436c9e3cd1e3b8b30f736d6&oe=59D4F54E

          Also, here are my donor sister, Lindy, and me. She’s my age! What’s cool is that her 4 year old son bonded with my dad almost instantly and she was truly stunned and he wasn’t that shy with me as well. She kept on saying how he’s usually hesitant with strangers. I said that maybe, in his own way, he understands the connection.

          https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19657241_10156125937519237_4333157938809883542_n.jpg?oh=46c6ec2360041827f62fb78886e4cc83&oe=59C59773

          My donor mom, Candy, and me

          https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19598727_10156125937704237_8028985391407768238_n.jpg?oh=49172574d17e651d64f4d94710d4c456&oe=5A0434C1

          My donor brother, Eli, and me. Candy said that he’s the most like Dulce personality-wise. He was 5 years old when Dulce died.

          https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19665378_10156125938144237_1020857596686377371_n.jpg?oh=c4c4b30680877d626ffcbdba7474951c&oe=59C9287B

          1. The photo of your donor mother listening to her daughter’s heart beat is so very moving. I can’t stop crying. I’m sure it was a very beautiful and emotional meeting for all of you. Life is so precious. Thank you for sharing.

          2. Thanks for sending these, Kimothy; great news that all went well. Hopefully the start of ongoing friendships.

          3. Oh, Kimothy, I am crying, too. What a wonderful gift this family gave you and you are giving them by living such a caring and loving life! Thank you for sharing with us. Your smile in the photo with your donor’s brother says it all! And, the donor Mom listening to your heart? I’m still in tears.

            Bless you all!

          4. Thanks ladies! I’m not much of a crier but my mom did and (of course) Candy cried buckets. Our first hug lasted for about 10 seconds which is why I said that it felt like forever.

            So my sister, Sam, (and some friends of mine) decided to make the top photo (of Candy listening to Dulce’s heart beat and lungs breathing) viral and lo and behold–someone from Love What Matters (www.lovewhatmatters.com) reached out to Sam and then, she directed them to me! I told them I wanted to check with my donor mom first. Candy gave me the okay but to please omit her name since it might “freak out” two of her adult sons (the ones who were the most affected by Dulce’s passing–especially Val since he and Dulce were BFFs). I did and was able to give the story from my perspective. Of course, I’m incredibly wordy and gave them the whole shebang while still giving Candy her privacy. 🙂

            Sooooo it looks like your Kimothy is about to become a little bit online/internet famous haha!

          5. I’m waiting for a movie or play, ‘Kimothy and Dulce’. I’m serious! Let us know when the story is up on lovematters.com. Had a quick look just now – not there yet. Meanwhile, give some thought as to who will play you in the movie. xx

          6. Seeing these pictures make me emotional. I’m glad that you were able to spend some time with your donor family and to bound together.
            Bless you and the others and I wish you nothing but the best yo you all.

      3. You’re like obviously hugely right Jen. Marble Mouth is totally unable to speak coherently, and it’s disgusting. People make excuses for her, she’s nervous (who isn’t), she’s inexperienced (after 6 long years) and it is just plain maddening to her blabber on and on about a sport she like obviously like adores, the men’s anyway. This!! is such a worthy cause and for sure wasty in the polka dots is hugely bringing obvious attention to something that is a part of British history. Poor thing, must be so difficult for her to sit in the ‘royal’ box and make funny faces for the cameras. However did Wimbledon get to be such an integral part of British history before the endorsement of the ‘Middletons’, and I say that because I can’t help but suspect that sooner or later we’ll get an article about the ‘fam’ attending, and even if not this year they’ve been very **obviously** in attendance in the recent past. I suppose she’s adulting it up with her haircut, but I still see a whole lot of ‘aren’t I just the cutest thing girly girl going on’. Blech!

        This is beyond ridiculous, this speech or interview or whatever. She’s a 35 year old woman who talks like a bloody valley girl, and even at that a valley girl could string a sentence together. Great job KMR on your translation/transcription. I used to work at a job where you were ‘dinged’ for more than 3 filler words. I’m not even going to bother to count Marble Mouth’s filler words, suffice it to say she’d be ‘dinged a lot’. Appropriate for a dingbat.

        1. Royals, Kate’s lack of progress in her role points to a problematic ‘hands off’ approach employed by BP and senior BRF (aka TQ and Charles). W+K (and possibly H) seem resistant to learning, happy to ‘wing it’. Their lack of prep is stark and obvious; the arrogance of that position is astounding. I think it’s all too late now to expect a radical change in attitude with the trio.

          1. Ooh, we all missed that nanosecond. But remember, they have ‘the magic’ to sprinkle. Bows head, tugs forelock.

        2. That’s an interesting point about her associating Wimbledon with the Middletons. Then no surprises to see the Middletons as regular attendees – they’ve always been big fans. Kate used to play as a child, meadows and Wimbledon whites, the Middletons are upper class to match Kate’s enunciation.

    2. In all fairness, must people in the U.K. cal her princess Catherine, it’s only people on the internet who care. Kate herself said ‘Kate’s just fine’ once. Titles mean very little in 2017, thankfully.

      1. Collagedrowner,

        As someone who lives in England I do not know anyone who calls her Catherine. Everyone calls her Kate Middleton. If they are not being so kind there are a few nicknames for her as well all based on Kate. Only the newspapers use her new name Catherine and that is not all the time. if you live in the UK it might be different in your area but I am in the London area and trust me no one calls her Catherine and I am married to a royalist.

        1. Okay? I was saying they never call her duchess, I said most people refer to her as princess. It wasn’t about Kate or Catherine. I know most people refer to her as Kate, but… that’s not what I was talking about. I personally find these nicknames for her extremely childish, but then, the English always have to do that.

          1. A Royal Duke is a higher title than a Prince.

            This means Duchess of Cambridge is Kate’s higher ranking title, calling her Princess (or to be correct “Princess William of Wales”) would be calling her by her less ranking title. And she only has these titles as she is married to William, she didn’t inherit them.

      2. And Roger is from Switzerland, not the UK, and I’m guessing he doesn’t follow the proper titles of the BRF. He’s perfect in my eyes, so he can call Kate whatever he wants. 🙂

  2. “I know I keep harping on Kate’s lack of enunciation when speaking, but as someone who transcribes what she says, it is very difficult to tell what she’s saying a lot of times because of lack of enunciation, run-on sentences, and not fully finishing a thought before starting a new one”

    Thanks, KMR! I don’t even try, because I find it so frustrating. I also wish she was as passionate with her patronages. Call me crazy, but in light of the tragic events in the UK, shouldn’t this be toned down a bit? Yes, Wimbledon will happen regardless, but I just feel that the words and actions she uses/used for Wimbledon can be used for some people who desperately need it.

    She looks good. The red pops out from the basic, boring and beige apartment.

    Have a wonderful 4th of July holiday, KMR!

        1. Stop second guessing yourself Rhiannon!

          It’s a celebration of coming back as well as a 4th of July celebration. So have fun and if you don’t complete the course then does it matter? The important thing is to turn up and have fun.

          And you have to go as you might just find your rainbow there?

          1. You are so right! I am looking forward to the camaraderie and just the satisfaction of being able to put one foot on the course.

        2. Into a 10k run 🙂 Don’t worry, you can do it. You’ve trained. Just make sure to stay well hydrated and you should be fine. Good luck.

          1. They better be passing out water! I send my love and wishes for your success! Just doing this is an achievement after all you have been through. So, hang in there and be proud of yourself. Oh, and Happy July 4th!!! Independence is your middle name, I believe!

          2. Rhiannon, please let us know how the race goes. Thinking of you every inch of the way; you are a role model for resilience. I remember that post you wrote a year or so ago saying you were feeling a bit off, couldn’t shake it and then it was just a roller-coaster from then on. And here you are, running another huge race. Incredible, simply incredible.

          3. Agree with Jen. Let us know how it goes and best wishes for you and Happy July 4th to you and your family as well as the others Americans on this website.

    1. She sort of obviously watched Wimbledon. Her fillers just cause her sentences to not really make sense.

  3. I am not surprised that she has redecorated KP rooms with the boring beige personality she exhibits in all aspects of her life. The hand gestures are also a bit much. Usually people resort to hand gestures because they are spinning their wheels on the inside.

    But yes, let’s do an interview about tennis, because obviously that is more important than her mental health issues or any other charity that she hasn’t bothered to do much with. She did not even do 10 appearances in June yet there were two terrorist attacks and a devastating fire down the road from her palace. Honestly how the UK people aren’t in revolt over this waste of space is beyond me.

    The pregnancy comments are asinine too. She wasn’t bedridden and sitting in the Royal box is no hardship as compared to the women who still have to work until days before giving birth.

    I wonder if this shows up in the CC as work.

  4. In general, I disapprove of journalists transcribing every little filler word and stammer when they quote people, but in this case I think your efforts here highlight Kate’s excitement for Wimbledon and male tennis players even as she burbles her way through another (somewhat less incoherent) interview.

    And yes, that is a lot of beige. It makes the palace look like a pristine coloring book, printed on recyled paper.

    1. I like including the filler words because part of what we comment on about Kate is how well she speaks and how much she is progressing in her speech-giving abilities, and I know that not everyone can watch the videos (I couldn’t embed the video this time, but usually I do) so I like to do a literal transcript so that people can know exactly what she’s saying. Also, I like having accurate quotes, and a lot of times the press will not print accurate quotes because they have to take out filler words and edit what she says to make it coherent. I’d rather just print the incoherent quote and let people judge for themselves based on an accurate quote. I think accurate but with fillers is better than inaccurate but without fillers.

      1. I meant to agree with your decision to do that here, whereas it usually annoys me in the newspaper. I’m sorry I wasn’t clear.

        1. You were clear. Sorry, I wasn’t. I should have been more clear that I was just elaborating on my decision to include Kate’s filler words because I’ve had people yell at me for doing so before.

      2. I, for one, am very grateful for the transcripts, as I hate being a prisoner of talking head videos. I love the addition of the fillers, because here it is pertinent in order to supply a sense of her delivery style especially as the content is guaranteed to lack substance. Thanks so much, KMR.

        1. If anyone is really really bored, and I doubt that anyone can get to this point of boredom, try removing all the filler words an d see what’s left. I suspect that the boredom level required to attempt this would be about 15 notches down the scale from watching beige paint dry 🙂

      3. I honestly don’t see any improvement; she is really inarticulate. The filler words – ‘sort of’, ‘um’, ‘that wort of thing, ‘things like that’ – are littered through videos over the years. It just hasn’t been addressed, primarily because Kate doesn’t feel the need to have a voice, doesn’t put the requisite work in. Now, how then she is supposed to exercise ‘soft diplomacy’ as a ‘Brexit ambassador’ to people whose second language is English remains a mystery.

        1. You know maybe we give her too much credit saying she is too lazy to get better. Maybe she really isn’t smart enough to improve. I mean six years later and nothing has changed. This is basic stuff. No one is asking her to do rocket science.

          1. Nic919 I don’t think she has any desire to change, she has it made and the media is just feeding her ego for the most part, so why would she? She’s ignorant for sure. To not even be able to comprehend basic decency or have manners that most of us learn in Kindergarten is very telling, in my opinion. She’s a complete and total disgrace, but I wouldn’t even hazard a guess at how smart she is. Maybe she’s playing ‘just a silly girl with no ability to do many things’ to well, not do many things, or maybe it’s all an act to keep Billy from being threatened.

          2. Don’t we all know women like that: expecting the world to provide, though give not a damn about others. Kate’s smart enough to put effort into things that matter to her, hence attaching herself to a 19-year old prince with a vice-like grip and then hanging on for dear life. But her sincerity is… both lacking and unconvincing. There’s an army of people now to do the heavy lifting of making madam look good, no matter what.

  5. Unable to watch BBC One and this particular show because of country restrictions. Is there some way to watch it in the US without a subscription to UK TV shows?

      1. The only way you would be able to watch BBC is if you use a VPN to fake that you have an UK IP address. There are free ones as well as ones that you can purchase. Just look around the internet.

  6. Jesus christ!

    What a load of nonsense rambling! She says something then stops, making the sentence make no sense.

    How old is she again?

    1. I know! Thanks KMR for transcribing, but to be honest I couldn’t read to the end. She sounds worse than those stereotype teenagers you see on comedy shows. Awful. I certainly won’t be watching (can’t stand tennis but love Andy as a fellow Scot so hope he does well, Kim is expecting again, yay!) but I’m looking forward to the comments!

      1. The amount of ‘sort of’ and ‘but’s in there is ridiculous.. so hard to read.. listening will be even more cringe worthy.

    2. A lot of people do that without realizing it. I was on a call with a marketer two weeks ago who did that constantly. It was very annoying.

      1. I appreciated the raw accuracy of KMR’s transcript. Has the BRF no advisors who review public communication? Or does Kate simply not take advice? If Kate is meeting business leaders, Heads of State and her counterpart European royalty as Brexit ambassadors, how on earth can she be taken seriously? She is, after all, representing Britain.

        As patron of Wimbledon it seems perfectly acceptable Kate does this interview. But in a wider context of recent tragic events, coupled with her more serious patronages, as well as blowing off the Irish Guards in 2016, it further entrenches the view that Kate is only interested in things she personally finds enjoyable.

        1. I’ve come to the conclusion that the BRF can get away with murder. So, improving Kate is not high on its priority list. They consistently give her fluff jobs and only need her to look fragrantly decorative; after all that’s all the peasants need- the ‘magic’, they are such chumps. Moreover, she’s not a liability like Diana.

          1. Yep. We consistently make the error of thinking that the BRF wants to be good at what they do, have pride in their abilities to relate to others, care about their causes etc. But it’s all about keeping the goodies flowing (position and public dough) with a few sprinkles of their ‘magic’. Such bloated fools.

      2. She should be made to listen to tapes of her speaking. I’m sure it would shock the pants off of her, but still…. She needs to prepare and prepare and prepare!

        1. Jenny, we would have to wait until she actually wears a pair of pants, and while it would be great to think that she would be shocked and appalled, and try to improve? I doubt it. In the 1998 Olympics there were two American skaters, one who assumed she had the Gold around her neck before she got on the plane, and another who spent hours watching tapes of her practices and asking advice. She even learned how to view the tapes herself. She made changes, small changes but they made all the difference in the world. I think wasty is like the first skater.

        2. Jen, no reply button by your last post so:
          “Love your analogy. And, Waity just may be skating on thin ice!!”
          Thanks, and your comment was awesome as well, I hope that Waity is skating on thin ice. **snicker**

    3. She sounds like an airhead frankly. Her comments have been inane the few times they are directly reported and excessively using like as a filler is the least of her issues. She has no substance and continually proves this when she speaks. The media often resorts to asking people what she said to make it look more impressive, but It’s not going to change at this point. At 35 if you are shallow and frivolous that’s just who you are. And despite the PR spin, she isn’t working more or trying to improve. She doesn’t have to. (This applies to William too. I find them both to be dullards).

    4. Kate is the same age as Princess Diana when she died. Her husband is only a year younger. The difference in poise and life accomplishments is stark between Diana, Wee Willy and Katie.

      1. Diana died August 31st 1997, roughly 2 months after her 36th birthday (July 1).

        Kate Middleton turned 35 on January 9th.

        William turned 35 on June 21st.

        1. It’s basically impossible for Kate to do enough in the next six months to even match a quarter of what Diana did with her life. But Kate doesn’t care to try anyway. We can pretend that Will is holding her back but that is malarkey. She waited and did nothing with her life for a decade to get engaged. She could have done volunteer work or something during that time. Instead she was basically a budget courtesan hoping to keep Will’s interest for the big prize. And Will just doesn’t care either because he has done very little too. Harry has set up Sentebale and Invictus, but what has Will done? Nothing. Didn’t get a pilot licence, couldn’t complete courses he started and he can barely attend the minimum of events and does it looking grouchy most of the time.

  7. I cringed while reading the transcript. So much filler words. English is my 3rd language and while studying, my teachers always said not to use such words as it gives a poor impression, especially in a professional setting. It also reminds me of the stern look I would get.

    I pity and applaud you KMR for transcribing the interview, people starting sentences but not finishing them is horrible, especially if you have to take notes. To think, that I still have a year of studies to complete. I just hope that I won’t get a teacher like this. *Huge sigh*

    The beige on beige is boring. It’s a good thing that she wore red, if she hadn’t, she might have blended into the background.

    And last, I wish she would give more in-depth interviews about her charities but that might require her to be actually involved with them.

    1. Oh, Ellana, and you write English so well. I am sure you speak it beautifully, too.

      What can I add to what all that has been said already? Her mediocrity continues to astound me, but really, can’t I just accept it and move on?!

      The fillers, the total insanity of the interview. You would have thought she was bedridden for the last months of her pregnancy with George. And, yes, aren’t there so many other far more important topics for her to be talking about now?

      As for the way she is sitting on that couch! If a camera were poised properly, could it have shot up her dress? There seemed to be quite an opportunity to do so in the shot that is posted here.

      Oh, and KMR, thank you for transcribing this. I cannot imagine the patience you have.

      1. She doesn’t even know how to show off the gams to best effect by using ladylike posture. Carole is a total failure when it comes to sexy princessing.

      2. Thank you jenny 🙂
        I think I speak English well, just with a huge French accent. I went to the States and studied there for one semester: my hearing improved as well my speech. Over the years, I lost that American accent and regained the French one. Those were the days.

        Oh well, I think none of us can accept such mediocrity because we know of the “real world” and know that we can’t succeed with her work ethic. Such opportunities and nothing much in return. I’d be mad if I were a British citizen.

        Her posture … is terrible. I agree with you.

          1. I never understood why people thought this. When I hear French people speaking English (or any other language for that matter), it just doesn’t sound right, not really fluid at all and kind of like it breaks the harmony of the language.

            Oh well, if you think it is sexy … why not.

        1. Ellana, I have a fun story for you. When my daughter was in high school we had the pleasure of hosting a young lady from France. She came here to see what America was really like, the middle class people. Her father wanted her to not stereotype Americans and have this experience. She spoke fluent French of course but her English was lovely and articulate. We took her to Yellowstone Park, and she got quite irritated at tourists who spoke their native language, her thought was you’re in America, speak English. That, I must stress, was her own thought, not ours. Sadly, we’ve lost touch with her but France holds a very special place in our hearts, we have people over there whom we consider to be family.
          I am not British, but I harbor a deep resentment towards anyone with status and privilege thru no effort of their own, who sucks off other people and blows money while others are in desperate need. With unearned status and obscene wealth comes an absolute responsibility to use it for the greater good.
          **off my soapbox for now** but keeping it handy 🙂

          1. “With unearned status and obscene wealth comes an absolute responsibility to use it for the greater good.”

            Yours is the platinum standard, royalsareajoke. Keep that flag flying.

          2. What a lovely story.

            I understand and agree with my fellow country woman, if you’re in a country abroad for a certain amount of time, you need to try to blend in and make an effort to learn the language and some local customs. Staying there for 5/6 months shed my stereotypes and reinforced some but it was a lovely experience.

            During my stay in the US, I came with 2 other students from the same French university and avoided them as long as I could, as I wanted the American College Experience and improve my English. I tried to have this mindset as well when I went in Germany. To this day, I still retain some contacts with my friends over the Atlantic and I wish I had the money to go back and visit them again 🙂

            And I wholeheartedly agree with your comment on privilege. Then again, I agree with most of your comments 🙂

  8. I sort of wonder if she will ever sort of wake up and wonder have I sort of enabled a boy to sort of play at time wasters instead of ……

  9. You know, I actually think this is sort of a good interview, I think.
    Mocking people for issues with talking and calling them a child/stupid isn’t cool, even when it’s about someone in Kate’s shoes. Perhaps she already gets help- We don’t know, I think it’s wrong to laugh at someone just cause they’re not a Obama/LutherKing/Kennedy talented speaker.
    She should do more interviews, and I agree she should do it about her other patronages, but I think it’s fair to assume she’s very nervous about things such as this so I can see why she would choose to be interviewed about something it’s easier for her to talk about. We also don’t really know how she ended up doing this interview, it happens to be the anniversary of Wimbledon, and as the patron now I think it’s obvious she participated.
    Also, yay, she didn’t constantly talk about the kids! Totally expected that, but she only once mentioning George. She’s looks much more comfortable too. Compare this to the engagement interview and there’s progress at least.
    I think it’s fine to add all her sort ofs and you knows, I mean, it’s what she SAID- but I hate it when people quote interviews and add all the ehms and erms, that does seem unnecessary to me and it just looks like you’re trying to make her sound stupid, even though everyone says ehm all the time. It just makes it harder to read what she meant which it doesn’t when you actually hear her because our ears filter it- our eyes don’t. But that’s just me.

    1. I do think this interview was better than her engagement interview. Kate actually opened up a bit and had some fun – like when she was talking about trying to do the tennis moves at home and not being as good as the pros.

      As I said to graymatters, I like including what Kate actually said, including the “sort of”s and “um”s because I’m going for accuracy in quoting her. And my ears don’t filter out the ums, I clearly heard them which is why I quoted them. I get that some people dislike my inclusion of Kate’s filler words, but I think it’s best to be as accurate as possible when quoting someone, and that includes the filler words. If someone were to quote my conversations they’d get a lot of “like”s and “um”s also, and I would be completely fine with it since that is exactly what I said. It would be on me to remove those words from my speech, not on others to remove those words when quoting me.

      BTW, when I transcribe William and Harry, I also include their filler words because I’m going for accuracy.

      1. Yes! I get why you write the you knows and sort ofs, leaving these out would be… fake? that’s totally fine with me, I’m only saying that I totally understand most quotations usually don’t add the ums. It’s actually scientifically proven (at least, so my psychology student friend claims) that the uhms are filtered out by your brain when you’re listening to someone and process their words, you hear it of course, but it’s not nearly as annoying as it is when you read it all the time. So I get why other people take that out. But do as you like, of course. Not trying to criticize too much, sorry if you took it that way!

        1. Hey there Collegedrowner, first off none of my comments are directed at anyone just in case you read them and think that they are. I actually commented before reading thru all the comments, this is my MO. I’m being a tad proactive here since I respect all view points but stand by my own.

          ” It’s actually scientifically proven (at least, so my psychology student friend claims) that the uhms are filtered out by your brain when you’re listening to someone and process their words, you hear it of course, but it’s not nearly as annoying as it is when you read it all the time. ”

          I hear the filler words and they make me crazy. It could be from my old job, but for me the likes and umms and errs are annoying and I just want to scream at times. ‘Get to the point’. And Caroline Kennedy got hammered for her
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZT8G6Qf7Ngo

          In any case the nicknames and criticisms directed at Kate are about the only thing IMO that she has actually ever earned in her entire life 🙂

          1. Hi back 🙂 I’m afraid your personal preferences and experiences with fillers isn’t going to make me doubt my friend’s info, especially since scientific resereach is based on many people, usually, when done right, and yo sure only one person. Everyone says ehm, even Obama, of course you HEAR it, cause you’re not deaf, what I mean when I say filtered out is, hat your brain doesn’t process it the same, so you don’t lose the focus on what you’re actually listening to. When a person does it constantly and all the time, obviously you’ll notice and it’ll be annoying, but ususally, most people say ehm, and erm and eeeuh, and you don’t Process it, you don’t lose focus.

          2. As a steady viewer of my local television news, I am constantly shocked by the way most average people speak. Whenever interviewed after witnessing a disaster, or having to describe someone who is part of the reporter’s big story — or for any reason, it amazes me at how many people say, “you know,” over and over again. Also, “em,” “er”, and other fillers. Now, these are not professionals, but I do hear those words when I listen to the news, so no, I don’t gloss over them. I hear them and find it annoying.

            As foir Kate, I point to Debra Green’s excellent post. Six years a Duchess and she cares so little for her role, or the people, that she refuses to work on her public speaking and presentation skills. She is living the high life without having to do much, if any, hard work, Who wouldn’t resent that?

            So, collegedrowner, forgive me for challenging your educated friend. But, I think anyone who hears Kate speak, not just reads the words, hears all the fillers. Maybe, more research needs to be conducted on this fascinating topic.

    2. I’d have more sympathy with your view if this woman wasnt being paid hundreds of thousands of UK taxpayers money to do a job.

      She has a responsibility to do that job well and that involves public speaking and being interviewed and sounding coherent. She is clearly not coherent, and she should be after all this time. There is no excuse in my book for her to be this poor when articulating points and promoting her patronages.

      She could get the best support in the world. Diana managed to overcome her fear of public speaking, she worked hard at it because she knew it was a crucial part of her role.

      For Catherine to be this poor at getting her points across in such an easy interview is for me indicative of a wider issue. A disrespect for her role and her patronages. That she appears to be continuing to wing it after 6 years both irritates and disappoints me.

      The fact that after 6 years, yes 6 years in this role you can only praise this as sort of a good interview says it all.

      As one of those UK taxpayers I am increasingly resentful that this woman, her husband and brother in law continue to live a very comfortable lifestyle while doing as little as possible.

      Either step away and live on your own dime or step up to the plate, work hard and give value for money.

      1. The engagement interview was also edited several times and allowed for Kate repeating her lines several times.

        The interview was the best edit of the lot.

      2. +1 Debra. Agree with every word. Thank you for including the fillers, KMR. They are important, given the rationale of this blog and the fact that public speaking/interviews are an important part of Kate’s “job”

      3. Agreed. When part of your job is public speaking, then you will be judged by by how well you do that. I don’t think anyone here is mocking her or laughing at her, they are just dissapointed and frustrated that she hasn’t made any apparent progress on this front in 6 years. She sounds bad and gives a poor presentation. She should and could (barring a mental or physical impediment) do better.

      4. +1. People take courses and hire coaches all the time to become competent speakers. There is absolutely no good reason why this bimbo is still speaking like a teenager. She’s living on the taxpayer dime and is a representative of the UK. She can afford several speaking coaches and has no excuse.

      5. She obviously took lessens to sound posher but didn’t want to actually take lessens to actually be more comfortable at public speaking? she went to a Henry Higgins when she should’ve gone to a Lionel lotus! And she is no Eliza Doolittle =)
        Add in all the free time she has in her hands to practice. I have several friends that have to give public speeches and they joined a group to help them get better and more comfortable.
        Yes, some people are naturally great orators, I don’t need her to be great, I need her to be understandable.

      1. After six years in the job she still sounds like a shallow and unintelligent woman. She has access to resources to change this but is too lazy to do so. Any criticism is deserved. It’s not like she is discussing complex topics either. It’s about tennis and her family… and for a taped and edited interview. What did the non edited interview sound like because the final version is still pretty bad.

      2. +1. Kate is representing the people of Great Britain. Therefore she has an obligation to behave professionally, far beyond spending money on over-priced clothes, accessories and cosmetic procedures. It’s clear she has chosen not to educate herself in order to perform better. The Wales ‘boys’ think they are untouchable, and Kate follows suit.

  10. It never ceases to amaze me how inarticulate Kate is. That would drive me mad in real life.

    My parents (and relatives) were / are very strict about articulating sentences. Fines if we used too many filler words and sometimes making you repeat the sentence as many times as it took for you to drop the filler words. They would rather you take your time and finish your thought rather than use filler words.

    Rinse and repeat for the younger generation.

    They did the same for certain sounds because if you grow up substituting certain sounds as you form a word, it becomes impossible to correctly pronounce the word later in life eg ‘dis’ and ‘dat’ when you mean ‘this’ and ‘that’. Most people don’t appreciate how hard the ‘th’ sound is until they are stuck with the substitute ‘d’ sound.

    Then again, i think as a family, we take the film ‘ My Fair Lady’ as a documentary.

    1. It is a documentary isn’t Hera? ? If she’s ever practised her craft of duchessing she would have worked at simple things like the art of conversation. But like William she just rolls up unprepared, wings it and does a bit of fluff. The idea of her leading conversations is quite laughable.

      1. Considering she was in a school play of the film, you’d think these lessons stuck.

        Then again, she clearly took the elocution part to heart and consequently assaults our ears with the uber fake posh accent.

      2. They should frog march her to finishing school; clearly she (and Mummy) failed at princess (courtesan) lessons. Let her learn with the teenagers.

      3. Pretty sure she thinks that simply deigning to grace an event with her presence, wearing **the ring** I mean, after all she **is** a duchess, and in her mind adored and revered by all who enter into her orbit. KMR I hope that my using ** to highlight isn’t annoying to you or other posters, I simply don’t know how to do bold, italics, or emoticons and I know your thoughts on all caps, and totally agree with it. I am techno challenged big time.

        1. The asterisk adds emphasis without shouting. You only need one on either side. It’s accepted practice.

          “…after all she **is** a duchess, and in her mind adored and revered by all who enter into her orbit.”

          I think that’s the crux of why she doesn’t improve her behaviour. She perceives her status and titles as a cloak or blankie which possesses and confers great and magical power. It is there to swaddle her, comforts her, and makes her impervious to expectation or change (which is life). It’s like fairy dust, only better. After all, gods don’t change.

    2. She is, indeed, inarticulate, so I believe someone’s feeding her words. I certainly side eyed the use of the word, ‘quintessential’.

    3. Ha! I just said above that she went to a Henry Higgins when she shouk’ve gone to a Lionel logue!
      My mother used to be an English teacher and not originally from OK, she made sure we didn’t say certain words that abound in small town ok. Some like y’all just couldn’t be helped. 18 yrs of regional vernacular some are bound to stick =)

    4. I might employ this with my daughter. I often think that my grandmother would be horrified if she could here the lack of precise wording. But in the last two years Sophie has begun using the “like” filler with increasing regularity and it’s driving me to great frustration.

    1. New Patronage and new outfit. The earrings look like the only repeat.

      Her lack of a pedicure is typical of her. She spends alot of time and money on grooming, and doesn’t appear to extend that to her feet!

      That said, i noticed her foot placement as she walks which clarified for me why her general walk is so inelegant. (Boy do i sound like William Hanson!). She puts her heel down before the ball of her foot. That’s a surefire way to walk like a duck. It’s toes first THEN heel in order to glide along.

      1. I recall reading William hates nail polish so she doesn’t use it.

        I’m amazed how much better she looks without the wiglets and extensions.

        1. Ellie, it’s not just a question of polish. It’s the general state of her feet.

          Every time there is a close up of them, they look awful. Corns, bunions, peeling skin, unkempt and ragged nails which are also discoloured, dry as hell skin.

          It might not be a big deal, but considering how immaculate the rest of her is, it is shocking.

          1. I don’t really pay attention but if I were in that position you bet I’d get pedicures often. Part of looking clean and put together!

          2. I always think her feet (when we see them) look like they’ve been doing the gardening. Sorry me being OCD about feet but I’m fanatical about my personal grooming and feet looking kempt and polished being part of that so much so that I have a standing beauty maintenance appt booked once a month, every month that includes mani / pedi / eyebrows / waxing. And on my maintenance day my dog is in the groomers having himself beautified too. (I hasten to add he’s only being washed, trimmed and paws clipped before anyone thinks the poor darling is being tortured).

          3. I find myself more judgemental when confronted by people in a professional capacity who make half the effort especially when the groomed efforts are so immaculate compared to the non- groomed bits.

            If you took the time to have a blow out, then your eyebrows, nails, feet, should all look immaculate.

            Otherwise what is the point of half and grubby half?

          4. Serious question: how do you treat bunions? They run in my family and no matter what my daughter or I do to our feet, they persist.

            I agree that when feet are on display, they should be groomed as well as the rest of the person. It’s actually why I approve of her so often wearing nude hose.

          5. She doesn’t think feet can be sexy, so she is indifferent to them. Willy probably is too. It’s all about the legs so no distractions with nail polish.

            I once met a woman in a shoe store who had beautifully formed feet. I had no idea feet could be beautiful as I have flat freighters.

          6. Bunions can only be fixed with surgery.

            However, you can attempt to help your feet by not wearing shoes that create them.

            Eg if you are flat footed, like Kate, don’t wear extremely high heels.

            Or wearing narrow shoes when you have wide feet, again like Kate.

            Or pointy shoes in general because those force your toes into a shape that exposes the joints of your feet most susceptible to bunions.

            Ultimately, always wear shoes that are half a size too big, that are not too high and not pointy. Change the height of heels you wear as regularly as possible so that your feet aren’t locked into one particular height.

            It doesn’t mean that you won’t get bunions, but you will reduce the likelihood of not getting them.

          7. Ellie, nail polish used to be (and may still be) against BRF royal protocol. That was why it was such a big deal when Diana showed up in the black revenge cocktail dress (all black is a royal no-no) along with red nails.

          8. I agree with you Herazeus, a great outfit includes a well groomed wearer. And that includes great hair, good makeup job, tidy nails (with or without polish) and right down to tidy feet if you are wearing sandals. My personal dislike is messy nail polish. I’m not talking about a chip or two that may have happened that day but I hate polish that has been left to wear off or looks like the wearer has been chewing on it.

            What amazes me is that Kate, with all the resources available to her, never looks 100% perfect. It’s like a veneer and she just couldn’t follow through? For example by having regular pedicures? And yes, an untidy fake tan line would be tidied up at the pedicure and blended in. I really just don’t get it?

            For those who think I’m being picky, there are plenty of women in the public eye who dress beautifully and are well groomed from head to toe so it is possible. Kate is now a member of the British Royal Family and therefore represents the UK. As someone from a Commonwealth country that means she also represents me, I’d prefer that person to look polished and act with dignity please, no see through dresses, no fly ups etc

          9. Personally, I don’t think a woman has to wear makeup or nail polish to be well groomed.

        2. Princess Margaret used to wear nail polish. I suspect that William doesn’t like polish, and Kate doesn’t like the maintenance to keep nails chip-free.

      2. Ah, that explains why I am far from a glider Hera! I’m actually trying to change my running stride so as not to pound quite so hard with my heel. Maybe I’ll get there eventually. I *was* pleased that she had on a new style of shoe. I thought they were lovely. And I love her new haircut. I just trimmed mine to a similar length (though I’m straightening mine most days.)

        And Rebecca Deacon had on a very appropriate outfit! Maybe they do read the blog after all!

      3. Everything I’ve read says to walk heel-toe in heels, just like in flats. Walking in heels requires a shorter stride, though. The big difference is that heels exacerbate poor posture.

        Kate has difficulties with her posture at the best of times, and has a very long stride — particularly when you consider how short her legs are relative to her body.

        1. Graymatters: think about ballet. Your heel is the last thing to hit the ground if at all.

          Weight should be at the front of the foot rather than at the back.

          That’s why dancers glide rather than walk like ducks.

          Being in heels doesn’t make any difference because the heel is the last part of the foot to touch the ground. And dancers rarely touch their heels to the ground.

          If you watch strictly dancing, that’s usually the first correction even though they are dancing in heels.

    2. There is nearly always something about Kate’s outfits that irk me.
      Today it’s the dress. I don’t mind dots but not big black ones.
      Big tick for her sandals and bag. So less formal than nude heels and clutch.
      I love her bag.
      No clutch means no hand holding in front of her body creating a barrier.
      Having her arms by her sides makes Kate appear more approachable and open.
      She should use a bag more often at events.
      I also like the slightly shorter length of her hair.

      Choosing not to wear polish does not mean Kate neglects her pedicures.

      1. This has been the length of her hair for a few years now.

        She normally uses extensions to add length and volume, but they are so poorly blended that you can see the clear line and length of her own hair.

        Just look at the still above. 2 very distinct lengths of hair. Shorter length her own, longer length is extensions.

        1. Herazues, I see a wiglet on the cap of her head, just not as thick or full or long as the usual ones. Also the spray tan and the blonde-ish streak in the front aren’t fooling anyone. She obviously got spiffied up for Andy. I live in Florida, and have for most of my life. You don’t get that brown that quickly. Unless she had hours to devote to sun-worshipping on a daily basis since the last time we saw her. I bet she didn’t want her crush to see how fake her hair normally is up close. Now next time we see her her “completely natural” hair will have miraculously grown out 8 inches.

          1. I saw a video of her arrival, and saw the wiglet at the top. It’s smaller than usual, so i take back my previous comment.

            That said, her hair really has been this short for many years. You see it in video where the extensions/ wiglets move sluggishly compared to her own hair, and are so badly blended that you can see the lines of them.

      2. No the absence of polish doesn’t mean no pedicures but the fake tan line around her feet does. Honestly it’s these elementary details that keep letting the side down. As Hera says she never ‘finishes’ off a look and it’s infuriating.

        Still on the bright side Rebecca remembered to dress her bottom half this week.

        I bought that VB bag at half price in the sale last year. It is lovely and the leather is a gorgeous quality and finish.

        1. Fake tan line around her feet doesn’t mean no pedicure.
          I think a visible tan line is poor application of fake tan.
          I have also noticed this tan line on her arms stopping at her hands.

          I can see what you mean by the two lengths.
          I prefer Kate’s hair shorter.
          It makes for a more youthful look.

          1. Sorry I’ve not made myself clear, if she had a pedicure the fake tan line would be buffed out by her beautician. Crucial for summer feet especially as women rarely manage to avoid a tell tale line around the feet, heels or harder skin on feet.

        2. I was so pleased to see Rebecca’s outfit today. I have half a mind to think they actually scan these blogs! Though they can only bring Kate along as far as she’s willing to be.

      3. In a few DM pictures she is holding the bag in front of her with both hands, still creating that barrier. It’s only when she’s walking or needs to shake hands that it is at her side. And the ring of doom is always prominently displayed I see.

        Poor Price Edward, Duke of Kent losing this patronage to Duchess Dolittle.

        1. The Duke of Kent was never Wimbledon’s Patron. He was and still is the President. HM was Patron.

          1. Thank you for the correction, KMR 🙂 At the very least he is losing the honor of presenting the winners’ trophies (if I read correctly).

        2. The DM printed photos where the bag had a big dent in it. Kate holding the bag in front of her made it very painful to see. I wanted to stick my hand in the bag a pop out the dent. Poor Kate. She can’t get herself pulled together.

          1. I can just see Victoria Beckham banging her head against a wall while looking at photos of her dented bag 🙂 I agree, there always seems to be at least one thing “off” with her style.

          2. Honestly, I think designers who dislike when certain people wear their clothes or how certain people look in their clothes are a-holes. People keep bringing up that Alexander McQueen (the guy) would have hated Kate wearing his clothes, but that doesn’t make him seem appealing or make Kate look bad, it’s makes Alexander McQueen seem like an ass. It’s designers like that who refuse to design nice clothes for plus size women and make fun of the designers who do. Those people are jerks and I don’t think they should be applauded just because of a dislike of Kate.

          3. KMR, the Alexander McQueen thing doesn’t feel the same to me as say Karl Lagerfeld, who has said nasty things about Pippa. Alexander McQueen was a staunch Republican. If he was still alive, it is questionable if he would have wanted to dress a member of the royal family due to his political beliefs.

          4. People keep saying that Alexander McQueen was overt in his expression that he disliked certain people wearing his clothes when he was alive and that he would only dress certain kinds of people which had nothing to do with his political beliefs.

          5. KMR, I don’t know if your comment about designers who dislike certain people wearing their clothes was directed at me or not but I wasn’t saying that VB wouldn’t want Kate to wear her clothes or carry her bags but seeing your bag with a big dent in it being carried by one of the most photographed women in the world must be frustrating. I have said similar things in the past, that designers must see how Kate alters their pieces or how poorly she styles them and imho, it must drive the designers crazy to see their creations being treated thus.

          6. KMR: i don’t take McQueen’s comment personally because he wasn’t designing to appeal to everyone.

            He succeeded inspite of his unapologetic views about the type of customer he wanted.

            His clothing was art. We don’t all like the same art.

            If that makes him an a-hole, so be it. He wasn’t designing to appeal to the average person. The one time he tried, when he was hired by Givenchy, it was a disaster because he remained uncompromising in his views and asthetic and that couldn’t work for such a company that wants mass appeal.

            Further, McQueen might have been uncompromising in his views as to the type of customer he wanted and or designed for, but he never ever body shamed women.

            His clothing, whatever your size was very powerful and meant to convey strength and warrior queen.

            Unlike other designers who frequently design clothing that worked on only certain body types which cut out most of the population AND those same designers called bigger women rude words. As Nota mentions above, Karl Lagerfeld comes to mind.

            If you look at proper McQueen clothing, the designs can easily fit any body shape no matter the size.

            The designs were easily adaptable without losing the essence of the design.

            Heck, even pregnant ladies could wear his designs without looking like they’d been compromised.

            http://cdn01.cdn.justjared.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/ashlee-2008-vmas/ashlee-simpson-2008-vmas-05.jpg

            I know someone who wore that same design in white as their wedding dress.

            Pippa’s royal wedding bridesmaid dress was adapted from a design first showcased in earlier shows. Everyone from Cameron Diaz to Eugenie wearing a short version of it years later. It looked fabulous on both despite their very different figures.

            https://media1.popsugar-assets.com/files/2010/01/02/0/192/1922398/de4f4b8cd9659337_100117-cam.jpg

            http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wy9zdhfZAx4/T8DtycKTujI/AAAAAAAAJFc/7TIugZK4Hlw/s1600/+ROYAL+ASCOT-DAY5+.jpg

            Here is Beth Ditto in various McQueen designs that look as fabulous on her as they do the skinny models and no compromise on the design just because she’s a bigger lady
            http://m.aceshowbiz.com/webimages/wennpic/beth-ditto-alexander-mcqueen-savage-beauty-01.jpg

            http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9TGUqNuJzJ8/UDpZI_M-NvI/AAAAAAAAC90/cyMUEDNaiYo/s1600/beth-ditto-in-alexander-mcqueen-post.jpg

    3. I’m not a big fan of polka dots, because they never match with darts and at waist seams, but this is a good silhouette for her, and yea for shorter hair, cute sandals, and a grown up handbag. She looks much fresher and younger than the V&A appearance, when she was dressing like a twenty-year-old. It’s also a rare appearance where Rebecca D. Is more formally dressed than Kate. My only quibble: the wrinkle in the corner of the handbag. I hate it if any of my bags do that.

      1. I totally agree about the bag because I want to reach into into the picture and sort it out. Having got it I know how gorgeously soft and buttery that leather is so it’s a real shame it looks like it got kicked in on the floor of the car.

      2. It looks odd that she is holding that bag while in a receiving line to shake hands. She should have handed it to a minder so her hands were free.

        I like her shoes, but they look very tight and you can see corns on her toes. This shows that her usual shoe choices are harming her feet.

      3. I think she looks like a linebacker because of the squarish top and raised waist. Polka dots are fun and summery. My gosh, what is in that giant handbag? Better for shopping. Perhaps she brought her lunch?

        1. There is a version of the dress with a round collar, which may look better. That said the dress is too expensive for what it is, especially the polka dots not aligning on the seams. Such poor quality.

    4. Hi, Mrs. BBV!

      I have a general question. Does the Duke of Kent have to bow to Kate? Or is it vice versa? Thank you!

      1. Well she outranks him technically so I would say yes but he’s blood Royal and she’s not so maybe only when she’s with William?

        Hera would know off the top of her head but I’m afraid I would need to look that one up.

        1. The messed up order of precedence really threw a cat among the pigeons.

          As he is a Blood Prince, he outranks her if she is solo. In this specific scenerio, Kate curtseys to DoK.

          Now if William had accompanied her, she would automatically assume his rank and DoK would bow to her (and William).

          1. I don’t half pity the lesser Royals, they must be like nodding / bobbing dogs at get togethers. HMTQ did rather complicate things with her revised order but I am so glad because the Yorkies or Princess Anne having to curtesy to Kate would have been too much. Xx

    5. I much prefer this shorter hair! I also like the dress.

      Her shoes are not flattering. It’s not just the toenails. The shoes look like they are too tight on the top strap and you can see a bunion forming. Bunions happen – hers might not be bad enough to require surgery, but don’t wear shoes that accentuate it.

      1. Kate has big feet and often doesn’t wear shoes that properly fit her. She does the same with her dresses, but there are more serious consequences when you put your feet in extreme heels that don’t suit your foot. It’s pure vanity at this point because it’s not like Kate has a job where she is on her feet all day, which would be another source of bunions.

    6. She is animated all right. Just like any other cartoon.

      I get that people can become carried away and make some pretty whacky expressions (whacky in the sense that it’s not their normal expressions), but as far as I’m concerned waity plays to the cameras and her expressions rarely fit in with those around her. Fake/phony to the very core of her being. However, having said that she for sure is in her element. And now I have to toss off a quick note to Andy Murray for missing his game.

      1. Both Kate and Pippa are very camera-aware, a point remarked upon by reporters in the early, post-university days as London’s new ‘it’ girls. They mug all the time, with Pippa usually smug, or attempting an ill-fitting coy look. You make an astute observation about Kate’s manic expressions not being in sync with those around her watching the same game. It’s all for show/ attention-seeking.

  11. A different note. It’s funny that she is heading out to Germany and Poland immediately after Wimbledon finishes.

    Her usual MO is to disappear to ‘prepare’ for an upcoming tour because working ahead of any tours is too much work, BUT Wimbledon. This she can’t miss. And writes regret notes to players when she misses matches as if she were required to attend.?

      1. If these weren’t drive-by photo ops, i’d side eye their decision to take the kids because there is no room for hanging out with the babies.

        However, it will be drive-bys that start mid-morning, if not noon, and finished by 3pm-4pm max. With exception of the 2 evening receptions, it’s a holiday where the parents go sight-seeing in the afternoon during naptime.

        1. I just think of the substantial tours Charles has gone on for example… going, going, going like the Energizer Bunny, and these two show up to do things for 2-4 hours and that’s it.

          No more than a holiday for them–which the DM has called out on!

      2. Ellie, if Canada is anything to go by, the children will be a distraction: wherever they take their children, W+K fuss unnecessarily over them. Given the announced itinerary, it would be inappropriate for the kids to attend most, if not all events. Again, they will be trotted out as props for their lacklustre parents.

        Since Kate can’t string a sentence together, and William is not much better, goodness knows what these tours achieve. Host countries just fritter away financial resources on a couple who can’t be arsed. The Queen and Charles have failed miserably to pull them into line and get them working in the UK, so it’s now the world’s job to keep them entertained? Geez…

        1. Bringing the kids is nuts. It’s their built in excuse for doing almost nothing, lazy buggers, while being shown platinum entertainment. For them, every holiday is a Cirque du Soleil day.

          This also means extra security and carting around nannies and tons of baggage- on a private plane no doubt, after being helicoptered in. Stop the madness! They are escalating the excess. Sweet revenge, huh Willy?

          1. The extreme abuse of public funds points to revenge. “You want us to work? Well, it’s gonna cost you.”

        2. At least the dm is calling it what all their other trips have been-a vacation! bwahaha bringing the kids guarantees press coverage, no one asking William about his shady FIFA deal or if Harry’s at home crying in his cups at his lot in life.
          We’re all going on a summer holiday! Prince George and Princess Charlotte will join William and Kate on their European tour of Germany and Poland

          Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4660848/Prince-George-Princess-Charlotte-join-Europe-tour.html#ixzz4lof34xg0
          Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

          And we called it when we said George was predressing up for German trip with the missing lederhosen

  12. As I said before, http://katemiddletonreview.com/2016/12/21/kate-middleton-at-bp-christmas-lunch-gains-hms-patronages/ somewhere in there, I’m still waiting on a lot of things.

    I’m still waiting to believe that Kate is at all knowledgeable about tennis and is indeed an actual fan. Because so far, a pap-op on Christmas Day in Cornwall in 2009 is the only time we’ve even seen her play tennis. Has she ever gone to any other tennis tournaments besides Wimbledon? She meets Judy Murray and doesn’t ask about the charity, or Andy, or coaching. She asked questions mostly regarding her kids and when they can play tennis. Which is also a stupid question, because the answer is “when they can hold a racket”, and any tennis fan should know that. (An Agassi fan who knows anything about him or his better half should know. But more on that later.) She’s also the patron of the All-England Club, NOT Wimbledon the tournament exclusively, and has been a member for years. Yet we haven’t heard of her associating with The Club at all. (My goodness, she didn’t think to meet the ball kids until last year. Not surprising considering she didn’t bother with women’s tennis prior to that either.) I still feel like it’s all about Wimbledon, because it’s Wimbledon. Like Roger’s nauseating response and note on “prestige”. (Classic, foppish Roger. I think he’s genuinely nice. And I consider him the most talented and gifted, but not the greatest, I’ve seen besides Serena. But he’s always giving me something to side-eye him for…) Even here it’s like generic stuff that any casual tennis observer would know, but still a little off and vague with too much emphasis on the past as well coming from the new patron if you ask me. The personal is personal. But when it comes to the actual tennis stuff, it’s notably nonspecific IMO. That’s probably more the fault of the BBC, Barker, and the editor. But it is what it is. Like, Sampras. Of course! Fetuses could tell you “Pete, Wimbledon”. Ivanisevic–That’s one of the strangest Monday’s and most iconic matches, (I’m sure it’s on every UK sports list ever), and it helped that Goran was a wildcard and a 3-time Wimbledon runner-up to Agassi and twice to Sampras. But speaking of the former, I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone bring up Agassi in relation to the history of Wimbledon. Agassi is a tennis legend and an American icon, of course. I think his name came out because he’s the second most famous tennis player of the 90s. But he won Wimbledon once in 1992. He got to the finals and lost to Pete in ’99. Memorable stuff! When they do a montage, Agassi weeping is in it. But he’s not tippy-top when it comes to associations with the tournament. Furthermore, his career was seen as a disappointment until that win and he still struggled with consistency basically until the late 90s and early 2000s. I severely doubt that Kate at 10 was assessing Andre’s legacy which really didn’t click into place until Kate was in her late teens. And at the exact same time Steffi Graf was in the middle of racking them up! She won her fourth at Wimbledon (and won three more) when Agassi won his first. Then the Williams sisters came on while Sampras and Agassi were on the way out, winning five and seven titles apiece. I hate to nitpick, but I don’t understand how a tennis fan, talking about Wimbledon, and a woman at that, doesn’t mention it. I just don’t quite buy that or get it. Or I have more questions.

    And does Nadal do nothing for you, Kate? By contrast to Agassi, Nadal is a two-time champ, has played in five Wimbledon finals, including three in a row against Federer, the third being an all-time classic. It’s weird to me that a 35 year old, who’s promoting the tournament wouldn’t shout out other living legends like that. Was she told to only mention Murray or Henman? Did she give completely unintelligible answers to other questions? I don’t get it. It’s a 75 minute documentary covering 90 years of Wimbledon. This is what they get out of and/or include from the DoC? Her vague, rambling, memories? “Cute”, personable anecdotes about her parents? It’s the most broad, ad-nauseam stuff. (Henman Hill! Give it a rest.) Just generic, cliffnote bits of tennis-past that you’d get from reading a dull top 10 slide on Bleacher Report. And speaking of how things were said, I wish someone would show her transcriptions like this. (Which btw, is not even the worst one! But that’s more a reflection of our low standards with Kate.) You know she got the questions well in advance, and should’ve had this stuff down pat. In fact, there’s no need to memorize anything if you’re speaking honestly, and personally, from the heart and your memory. I wish Rebecca would say, “Look how many commas it takes to SORT OF keep track of what you’re trying to say”. I mean, the answer to who she watched growing up, “things when they would play and things like that”. That’s TRYING to say something. Then the filler words, made worse by a limited vocabulary and an inability to just get it out! She says sort of 11 times! Trains of thought derail. A grown, college educated person shouldn’t say “quite late” and then say it again in relation to something else in basically the same sentence. Is the rambling and excessive use of certain words part of the posh, doddering, aristo affectation?

    1. In answer to your very last question, NO!!!

      Regarding rest of your comment, i was nodding along to what she said without realising that everyone she name-checked would have been too old for her time though fits in with my time, plus her general comments ARE incredibly generic with little detail for a so-called tennis fan.

      And Tim Henman was never in the league of Sampras, not to mention their very distinct physicalities which makes her dad twice an idjit for mistaking one as the other. ( sorry Mike).

      The women’s games have been so memorable over the years that it surprises me how they have escaped this keen tennis fan.

      And Henman Hill is so old school i can’t believe that’s her memorable mention of Wimbledon.

      Also, it might be the editing, but today’s walkabout with the tennis boys and girls is curiously lacking pictures of her chatting to tennis girls beyond the official greeting line up.

      1. I’m showing my age but my very first Wimbledon was Stefan Edberg and Mats Wilander era and McEnroe’s last singles year. Then Becker v Lendl rivalry for the next five or so. I don’t know how anyone, even Kate forgets details like that? As a tennis lover and keen player as a teen they are imprinted on me and I can still remember my first time in Centre Court and the old Courts 1 & 2. So many amazing memories of the players just walking to and from their matches unchaperonrd by security in those days and stoping to chat to the fans.

        1. I’ve never been a tennis fan, but i recongise those names. That was an era in which tennis threw up so many strong personalities that were catnip for media outside of tennis. And so many players keeping the game so even handed as opposed to the dominance of one or two players in the current game.

          Wasn’t Edberg a one and done Wimbledon winner?

          I think my interest in tennis was genuine support for the women, and your basic teen crush on the men without truly evaluating their game.

          1. Edberg was a twice winner but catnip to women as he was rather gorgeous. I get the Agassi adulation he was very charismatic and charming. He loved Wimbledon and made a huge point of playing to the Wimbledon crowd so I can see why he would be a distinct memory but you are exactly right…..Men’s tennis was very media worthy because of big personalities and shenanigans off the court too.

          1. Ellie, my knowledge of tennis is rather like my knowledge of football.

            I am super interested during the world cup, and only to support Brazil or Argentina, and ignore it rest of the time unless it appears in gossip/ business news.

            If i pay attention to any players, it’s primarily because they are cute and not necessarily because i have a huge appreciation for their game.

            With that indifference to the game, i think you and i know more about tennis than Kate does.

          1. I had such a crush on Pat Cash. I gave up an afternoon on Centre Court for the Siberia that was Court 18 to dribble over Pat Cash. Xx

          2. I still remember one of the signs in the stands for a Cash vs. Lendl match. “Cash is better than a Check” – Pun intended 🙂

            There was also one year, an Australian Open iirc. Cash sat down and refused to get back onto the court. He just pointed at the sky, started packing his gear, and the sky opened. He knew his local weather!

      2. I can believe, since Goran was a unique and talented player, that Kate may have taken a liking to him and did watch him as she grew up. He did have his heart ripped out three times on center court before finally winning in the oddest, most spectacular way. But it’s one of those things–Like, if you said you loved gymnastics, and I asked who were you into when you were growing up, and what are your favorite memories, and you said, “Kerri Strug sticking the vault at the Atlanta Games”. Well, yeah, it’s one of the most famous moments in all of sports history, emblematic of the sport of gymnastics and The Olympic Games. But if you were an actual fan of gymnastics you’d have more to say about the sport besides that sort of item. That’s the type of thing with the Ivanisevic reference to me. Can I believe you enjoyed him and grew up watching his game? Yep. Can I also believe you don’t know much and are naming something really famous? Yep! And Agassi? Nope. No you didn’t. No you don’t. Boris Becker had a bigger legacy at Wimbledon than Andre. He won his third title in ’89 and lost in three finals afterwards. Perhaps Kate is just merging Agassi’s legacy in general with Wimbledon. But I still wouldn’t categorize that as something I grew up with if I was nearly 20 years old when that legacy really started taking shape… and had little to do with Wimbledon by then, (I think Andre won, so he played in two finals total, and got to the semi’s three other occasions in his entire career, Fantastic, but again, Andre’s not heavily associated with Wimbledon. It’s more the AUS and US Opens, Pete, The Career Golden Slam). I don’t know why I’m so bothered by this, LOL, but I am. (I do know. It’s because I think she’s full of it, I smell it, and she can’t even fake it impressively when given time and a format to do so 😀 )

        Nic919 says below, “It’s just weird she mentions Agassi so much because he is American and while he was popular, it was probably more for North American fans.” I didn’t mention it but that’s why I brought up Nadal in the first place, lol, and another thing I found odd about the Agassi reference. I mean, on it’s own it’s not a problem and understandable. There hasn’t been much for a British tennis fan to talk about for long stretches. Hence Henman Hill still being a thing. But if we’re bringing up Americans, and Roger, and Murray (so current players), why no mention of Rafa or Novak? Or up-and-coming British talent. Give them some shine. Say you look forward to watching them lift the trophy one day. Why no comments like that? And perhaps it’s really naive of me. But I also don’t buy and have many questions about a young woman, so into tennis, not having something to say about Graf, Venus, or Serena. Did they not inspire? I’m not asking her to pull Richard Krajicek out of her hat. But I’d take a shout out to Davenport, Hingis, and Martina Navratilova who, at 33 years old, won her last (and NINTH!) Wimbledon title when Kate was eight. I’d find a mention of Lleyton Hewitt more natural than the Agassi namedrop. Speaking of, there were four men’s championships in a row with an Aussie competing. Hewitt was the only winner, with Rafter losing back to back and Mark Philippoussis losing to Federer in his first GS win. See, that’s the kind of thing and the knowledge I’d expect to drop from the patron of the All-England Club, a self-titled “fan” of Wimbledon, and a representative of England and the commonwealth countries. Yeah, that’s pandering. But there are points in pandering. And what else is she here to do?

        BTW, I should be clear, and you’d think I’d accomplish that since I’m ranting for a second time, that when I say the personal is personal, I should’ve pointed out the marked difference between Kate talking about her parents, talking about herself, and talking about Wimbledon. Her comments about her experiences, and when she sort of went to Wimbledon, and sort of had the opportunity to go–Completely unintelligible. Kate trying to talk about Wimbledon, the experience, the environment, it’s utter word salad. Oh, she’s rambling and tedious when talking about Ma and Pa Midds. But I can actually understand it and she says something. She doesn’t really say anything when talking about tennis history.

        1. Because, Dorothy, the family anecdotes were real; the rest was PR fluff that Kate couldn’t carry off. Her lack of tennis knowledge gives one pause for thought about her passion for the game.

      3. Those ball boys and girls deserve to be recognized. They’ve had to go through extensive tryouts and practices since February or so to get ready for this tournament. They’ve put in more hours and effort training for this event than I think Kate has ever done for anything ever.

        And that official lineup–what did the organizers do, go down to the locker room and see which players were dressed and cleaned up and presentable to an HRH? Can’t think of another reason to have selected Lopez and Radwanska to be in that lineup.

        I would love, absolutely love to know what Martina Navratilova had to say about having to stand in this line and greet Kate. Other than being patron of the All England Club, there is absolutely nothing about Kate that Navratilova could respect.

          1. Yep, I think you’re right. Kate’s such a fan of tennis that she still needs Rebecca Deacon nearby to remind her of who’s who at Wimbledon.

        1. I’m thinking Rebecca is counting every day until the end of the Poland-Germany holi-tour. Then she can waltz out the door of the office knowing she doesn’t have to deal with the ditzy duchess’ social skills again.

    2. The Nadal Federer match that lasted until it was so dark was a classic and happened at a time Kate alleged tennis fan would definitely remember. Agassi and Sampras had classics, but they tended to happen at the US Open and not Wimbledon, because Sampras was so strong on grass. And Agassi never directly beat Sampras for the final.

      It’s just weird she mentions Agassi so much because he is American and while he was popular, it was probably more for North American fans. It’s like a US tennis fan fed her info about the history of the sport. Maybe Jason watched tennis?

      1. The only thing I can think of re: Agassi, is that this is the 25th anniversary of his win, so perhaps he is in the news for that milestone, and she, or more likely her advisors, picked up on that? No mention of great female players/champions like Graf, the Williams sisters, Sharapova, Navratilova is suspicious for such a supposed fan of the sport.

        1. I don’t get the impression Kate is a supporter of women in general. They’re competitors in one way or another.

  13. Nice to see some personality and humor in the interview. I know nothing about tennis, but it amazes me how into this she is and isn’t into her patronages and doesn’t give a horse’s arse about ’em but will show for Wimbledon!

    I am always amazed at how terribly inarticulate she is. You’d think she would do some work with it but I doubt anybody ever comments on it or tells her how bad it is; William and Harry are just as bad, the latter not as much as he has been due to all the practice. It’s embarrassing to listen to /and/ read.

      1. Harry has never pretended to have learned much in Eton. He’s a “student of life” kind of a guy. And he hasn’t had much access to the classes in “normal”.

        Except grocery shopping. He aced that class.

          1. I think on a side note it is good that Harry is going grocery shopping. I loathe it. I have since I was a student and it bugs me to this day. I do get to talk to the shop staff etc. I like that. Something you don’t get with online shopping. I think going back to the ball girls and ball boys that they deserve talking to Kate. Kate is not very good talking to someone who is not a celebrity etc. It is saying they are not important when they actually are a huge part of Wimbledon.

    1. Wimbledon is once a year and Kate gets to sit on her bum and watch others work x multiple times = multiple CC numbers. We have a winner in the patronages stakes.

      1. Wimbledon is once a year, but the All England Club has as its charity the Wimbledon Foundation, dedicated to changing the lives of the young and disadvantaged through a number of different programs, and you would think that Kate, as patron, would become involved or at least appear to support some of its initiatives. But I’m afraid that because her own royal foundation doesn’t benefit from the Wimbledon charity, we won’t see Patron Kate anywhere outside the Royal Box.

        1. But, but this is what the RF web site promotes about the Coach Core program: ”Sport has the potential to transform lives and engage those who are trapped in poverty and isolation. Through training, teamwork and exercise, sport can make an enormous difference in both personal and educational development.”

          Are you saying that she won’t take an interest in the charity arm? I think the DM should look into this (we know you’re reading this blog) and ask why the duchess is not promoting tennis in local sport programs (or programmes) because the RFoundation is very interested in that. I’m sure the Wimbledon Foundation would appreciate help from the RFoundation. The duchess would be so happy to promote tennis as an essential sport. 🙂

          1. “The duchess would be so happy to promote tennis as an essential sport.”–But only if there is the tennis equivalent of Ben Ainslie to flirt with while she’s doing her charity “work” lol.

  14. I cannot recall a photo of the Queen playing tennis while patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) Wimbledon or the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA).

          1. I saw her close up once there in 1985 (the year Boris first won Wimbledon) leaving in her car with the windows fully open so everyone could see her properly and she was so, so radiant and glowing. Absolutely beautiful she was and I felt like I wanted to stroke her face as her skin was like The Velveteen Rabbit.

            See no one forgets a Wimbledon memory like that Kate.

          2. Mrs BBV: do you remember the time a player sobbed on her shoulder because she was so disappointed that she’d lost the final?

            Can’t remember player’s name, but that was a memorable game and a memorable empathetic moment from the duchess.

          3. Martina Navratilova actually credits DoK for helping her to reunite with her family when they were behind the Iron Curtain and Martina was living in the US. Apparently the DoK used her influence to help. A lesser sung Royal who is by all accounts a true humanitarian and has suffered mental health problems herself.

          4. The DoK is an amazing woman. I hate that she never got much coverage. She seemed to have suffered marrying into the Royal Family as well.

          5. You took the word right out of my mouth. When I looked at the photo, I said, “what a glorious dress.”

            Thank you for the link. Just magnificent.

  15. I offer you a drinking game. We play that interview and we have a shot every time Kate says “sort of”.
    Cheers 🙂

          1. I’m sure keen on some Pimms considering it’s that time of year. We can, um, sort of, like, start with that, right, and um, sort of go on from there.

    1. I got the drinking game started already, polishing off my wine in Lisbon as we speak. Bring your goblets and your poison of choice, ladies and gentlemen!

  16. Is it just me or does her constant use of “sort of” negate what she’s trying to say? “It’s such, sort of, quintessential part of the English summer” is it part of the quintessential English summer or not? The use of “sort of” makes her seem unsure of what she’s trying to say, as though she’s not sure of her own opinion. I find it rather sad really, as though she fears her opinion is not the correct one to have and so undermines it just to be on the safe side.

    Most interviews I’ve seen of the various members of the BRF say how much they dread speeches and public speaking, but they continue to do them and while none of them are oratorical geniuses they don’t do half bad. So why can’t Kate? Why does she need to be coddled so? Imho, we need to experience situations that make us uncomfortable in order to grow. Just as we stress our muscles when exercising to make them strong or stress our brains when studying in order to become brighter, so too must we stress our whole selves in order to grow into a more well rounded individual.

    1. Regarding your first paragraph, someone once said the exact same thing about her. Years ago.

      She doesn’t own her opinions. She qualifies them in such a way that if you disagreed with her, she can drop the opinion immediately and probably adopt your opinion.

      1. It doesn’t say much for William that that’s what he chose as a wife, typically a man’s primary confidant. It explains why his arrogance has become more pronounced (or perhaps just more obvious) since his marriage. He’s surrounded by employees who keep their jobs by agreeing with him, friends who keep their social status by keeping silent about his flaws, and a wife who molds herself into a barbie doll who can only parrot back his opinions.

        Of course, I don’t actually know any of this. It’s just a harsh extrapolation of rumored behavior.

    2. Well, statistics show that most people’s biggest fear is public speaking. When you are in the public eye, you better get used to it. Fake if until you make it, Kate. And, others!

      She’s so tense, which shows me that she has little confidence in herself. You can thank her Mum for that, in all likelihood. I wish someone who cared for her would take her in hand and give her a big boost emotionally. She doesn’t have to win any awards for her public speaking, but if she would just relax and try harder. Get some professional help! She’s had this role as Duchess for so long now. I wonder just when she is going to hit her mark!

      1. I agree Jenny. I think that is where research comes in so you can back up what you say with facts etc. I think faking it until you make it is ok but I think there comes a point where you just have to go for it. I can’t believe with all that help available to Kate that she can’t make use of it. It is has if that Kate is trying to copy rather than be herself. Or just think of your confident friend and pretend you are them.

        1. Yes, Laura. She needs to prepare. When I said fake it ’til you make it, I was referring to her delivery. Act confident, even if you don’t feel it, and you show confidence. Of course, if what you are saying is ridiculous, nobody will take you seriously. You are so right! Prepare does not seem to be a word that resonates with Will or Kate.

          1. it is interesting that she tries hard to fake her pronunciation but doesn’t try at all to speak concisely. I thought the two would go together, since it shows an awareness of your speech and a desire to improve it.

    3. It makes it feel, to me, like she doesn’t have strong views, so she couches them in less definitive statements. It makes it easier for her to change them later. I see it a lot in relationships where someone is trying to please their potential partner – “Do you like Indian food?” “Sort of… sometimes.” “I hate it.” “Yeah, me too. There is just one dish I like a little.” I think she has lived a life of saying what she thinks she needs to say to impress whomever she is trying to impress at that time.

  17. Firstly Happy 4 July for tomorrow for those that celebrate it. It is my second niece’s birthday tomorrow so a double celebration 🙂
    I think this interview with Kate is much better. There is more depth but there are a lot of filler words so I can’t see that Kate is more confident. I think that Kate tries to hard and a little humour is good for instance going on about her dad saying hi to Pete Sampras. Was it the Goran Ivanisevic match that Kate queued for? I found that match completely long drawn out and no real game plan. A friend said that he truly believed it was his destiny which is a more profound thing to say, in my opinion. I would have thought that Kate would not have had special privilege then because that was before she was out with William. I like Kate’s earring’s but I think they are rather an average accessory. The red dress stands out but I think could have been a blue so as not to match Sue Barker. No mention of Virginia Wade or Joanna Konta. Just the men and a Swiss men at that.

    1. The thing i remember about that match was that he was in the tournament as a wild card, and played like he would never get this golden opportunity again. He was awesome and i think the country loved his fighting spirit.

      After the match, he went clubbing and ended up in the papers for partying until dawn with a bevy of beauties. Completely unrestrained behaviour for a Wimbledon champion.

  18. Um, well, you know, I find this interview sort of all fluff, um, and not much substance. Such a well, you know, big deal, well sort of a big deal, is being made about this, when she um, you know, rarely is interviewed about um, her other patronages. Um, I do sort of want to um get in on the you know drinking game Um, where do I um sign up?

    Sorry, I sort of could not, um, resist!

    1. I don’t know but whatever the reason is, I hope she continues on this stride. And doesn’t buy much new clothing and reuses the ones she has already.

  19. I’d love to know exactly what kind of game Kate has. Based on what we know, I bet she is one of those players who just hangs on and runs around to get to every ball, but doesn’t really do anything with it. Doesn’t take any risks, doesn’t play boldly, doesn’t know how to construct a point. Someone who has her basic strokes down, but hasn’t worked or trained enough to have any really strong shots or weapons. Someone who hates to lose but is afraid of what it takes to win, so will just wait for her opponent to make an error. Someone who constantly looks to her mummy for approval.

    And speaking of mummies, does anyone know if Carole has yet finagled her way to receive some sort of All England Club membership?

    Would be interesting to know what year Mike Middleton’s blunder–which was probably due more to Pimm’s Cups than anything else–occurred: Clearly, it was before the Middletons and the Henmans became the tight friends that the Middletons now claim to be. Funny how it doesn’t take long for the Middletons to forge such close relationships with the “right” people, like the Henmans and more shockingly Federer, that lead to wedding invitations, which don’t extend to close members of their own family.

    1. I’m curious as to why people of means/fame/aristocrats buy into the Middleton’s at all. The Middleton’s must be incredibly charming so that people let them into their circle. I read that Pippa had it down pat at school and at university – she was unrelenting in her pursuit of useful people.

      1. I think you’re right–that the Middletons must be incredibly charming. But Carole and Pippa are also opportunistic and manipulative. I totally believe those stories about Pippa at school. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

  20. KMR I have to congratulate you for transcribing this without fail and not giving up on the formidable task- I could barely read it due to al her filler words and her complete inarticulate manner in her first and only language and for being a woman of 35 (or is it 36?).

    And the BRF are going to send this inarticulate woman-child to European nations as a Brexit ambassador? How insulting for those who actually do this for a living and have earned the position of diplomat or an ambassador?

  21. Someone already brought it up but I was going to say we could make a drinking game of her speaking/interviews. We’d be plastered in no time.

    I do transcription and depending on the client’s requirements, the finished product could be edited or verbatim. Even on my verbatim projects I’m not recording so many filler words. She’s had 6 years to improve and give a damn about her job. Instead she proves repeatedly that she’s a vapid clotheshorse. My oldest lives with his father because his school is amazing and I don’t dare pull him out and put him in our district. He uses “like” nearly every other word. He arrived for summer break yesterday and we’re already working on mindful speaking. It’s an important skill to have.

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