MIDDLETON MATRIARCH
KATE’S MUM BREAKS HER LONG SILENCE ON FITTING IN WITH THE FIRM
Kate’s mum opens up
For nearly 15 years, since it was officially confirmed that Prince William was dating her daughter Kate,
Carole Middleton has been the model of discretion.
Although she’s had ample opportunity, Carole (63) has never spoken out about her eldest child marrying into the royal family or even given a proper interview.
But she has broken her silence to give no less than three interviews this month and although she has refrained from sharing her opinion about her in-laws, other than to say she thinks William is “lovely”, she has revealed some telling details about what it’s like to be in the spotlight thanks to who your child marries.
The mum of three told one paper she wanted to “come across as normal, because that’s what I am”, despite being the grandmother to the future king, of course. She says she no longer reads online stories about herself. Often painted as a pushy parent, she used to check out what was being said because she thought it was “better to
know what people thought”.
But she changed her mind about that a year ago and stopped looking at the articles. “It doesn’t make any difference,” she says. “I’m not really sure how I’m perceived now.”
However, Carole, who has made millions from the party supplies business she started from home, does seem to care about how she comes across. In one interview, after talking about how she likes to have as many Christmas trees as possible around the house, she takes a moment to reflect before saying, “That makes me sound as if
I live in a mansion, doesn’t it?”
And later, when she’s asked where she likes to shop, she pauses again to ask, “How’s this going to make me sound?”
She chooses her words carefully, especially when talking about her children – Kate (36), Pippa (35) and James (31). Her legendary discretion is partly down to natural instinct but also a repercussion from unfavourable media coverage. “Over the years, it has proved wise not to say anything.”
She has, however, admitted that one of the things she has worried about most was that her close-knit family would grow apart as her children got older.
“My biggest fear was that I’d lose my family, but we’ve stayed close,” she says. “There are times when they say, ‘Can you do this or that?’ and I can’t quite. But they like the fact that I work.”
Carole is very happy with the choices her daughters have made when it comes to their husbands. “I have two lovely sons-in-law,” she says.
(Pippa is married to multimillionaire hedge fund manager James Matthews and they have an eight-week-old son, Arthur.)
She is hoping she’ll also have a lovely daughter-in-law, she adds. Son James is yet to marry.
When asked about Kate’s wedding, Carole freezes for a moment as she thinks about how much she should say. She eventually talks about how she helped her daughters with their wedding planning.
“We talked about music... everything. But I think the most important thing, as a parent, is to listen to what your daughter wants. You can have all the ideas in the world, but it has to be about them. And don’t muscle in on the guest list!”
As for the stunning blue Catherine Walker dress and matching coat she wore to Kate’s 2011 wedding, Carole says, “Like every mother, I wanted to look my best, make my children proud and enjoy the day. I honestly don’t think I was any more stressed than any other mother of the bride.”
She’s still very hands-on when it comes to running Party Pieces, and says her work and her family help keep her sane.
“I should probably be meditating,” she says, laughing. “I’d like to find space to do more stuff I love, but my family are paramount.
They come first and that will always be the case, even when I have more
‘me time’.”
Carole started Party
Pieces 30 years ago to earn extra money while she was a stay-at-home mum. (Husband Michael was a flight dispatcher at
British Airways, where she had previously worked as ground crew.)
“I thought, ‘Ooh, bills to pay.’ But I also had this strong feeling that I hadn’t achieved anything. I got married at 25, had
Catherine at 26...”
She came up with the idea of making party bags for the parents of children who didn’t have time to put them together themselves and gave out flyers at Kate’s playgroup. The business moved into party supplies, Michael gave up his job to work for it and they went on to make a fortune.
Although work is important, her family will always be her priority and she takes care to do what she believes is best.
Everything she’s ever done, Carole says, “isn’t about fitting in, but based on my own values and what I think is right.”