Kate Middleton, the sixth-former saving herself for Prince Charming

By Rebecca English



Fun times: Kate, right, with pals at a sleepover in 1998


Her ability to charm saw fellow sixth-formers vote her Person Most Likely To Be Loved By Everybody.

It is a trait which will no doubt stand Kate Middleton in good stead in her new role as future Queen.

Former classmates from her days at Marlborough College recall a teenager who had blossomed into a stunning young woman but shunned the attention she received from the opposite sex, intent on saving herself for someone special.

The portrait of a princess in the making emerged as her Year Book, compiled by students at the £29,000-a-year school to celebrate their graduation in 2000, was opened up to the Mail.

Inside are several shots which depict Kate (who was always called Catherine by her friends) as a fun, popular girl but one who, even then, knew never to overstep the boundaries.

‘Catherine was really good for a laugh,’ recalls one former classmate. ‘She was always raising people’s spirits and could be very goofy but was very sweet and quite shy at times.’

Kate’s only vanity while at school – according to her Year Book entry at least – was a very teenage obsession with her changing body.

Her peers write: ‘Catherine’s perfect looks are renowned … but she is often found squinting down her top screaming, “They’re growing!”


'First love': Kate with Willem Marx, left, said to be her first boyfriend and another Marlborough pupil Nick Jenner


‘Catherine has had a few hiccups through her time at school. Being a late starter her innocent honesty with Mrs P [a teacher] landed her in a couple of tricky situations:

“Where do I put my clothes Mrs Patching, they smell of smoke?”.

‘However it would be true to say that with all Catherine’s mannerisms, life is definitely more interesting and fun with her around.’

Even then the brunette was a hit with the boys – but was always reserved in her behaviour with the opposite sex.

‘She was stunning – every boy in the school fancied her rotten,’ one pupil recalls. ‘But apart from a couple of snogs she never went out with anyone. I got the very distinct impression that Catherine was the kind of girl who wanted to save herself for someone special.’

Among her tight-knit group of friends were several with close links to William, although the pair were never actually introduced until they enrolled as History of Art students at St Andrews University.


Early friendships: From left, Ruth Currie, Rebecca James and Kate


They included Emilia d’Erlanger who, shortly after leaving school, was herself romantically linked with William after she joined him on a Mediterranean cruise, but has gone on to become one of Kate’s closest friends.

Then there was polo player Mark Tomlinson, whose parents are old friends of Prince Charles.

Another pupil, Willem Marx, was rumoured to have been her ‘first love’, although her name appears alongside Henry Preston in the list of ‘Best Couples’.

Unlike many of her classmates, Kate was not a big drinker.

One weekend she was among a group of girls invited to a black-tie party held at the house of Olympic horseman William Fox-Pitt.

Kate, who had eaten nothing all day, spent the night dancing and drinking champagne.

‘The following morning the girls got back on the train to Waterloo very hungover and without any sleep,’ a friend recalled.

‘As the train approached London, Catherine started looking very pale and she was violently ill.

‘That was the first and only time anyone ever saw Catherine drunk or even slightly out of control. It was so out of character.’


House party: Kate, centre, with friends at a house party at her old school





Source:Dailymail

Posted in: Celebrity,Kate Middleton