'The Crown' features Kate Middleton's mother, who was 'instrumental' in Prince William romance: expert
Was Kate Middleton’s mother responsible for securing her daughter’s royal future?
Many believe so.
In the new season of "The Crown," viewers are introduced to Carole Middleton, the former flight attendant who reportedly masterminded her eldest daughter’s romance with Prince William.
The claims have earned the real-life matriarch the title of "the British Kris Jenner" among viewers and the U.K. press.
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"Was Carole Middleton ambitious for her daughter? Of course," Christopher Andersen, author of "The King," told Fox News Digital.
"Was Carole instrumental in bringing William and Kate together? Absolutely," he shared. "They probably never would have even met if Carole hadn’t schemed to make it happen. The truth is that Carole Elizabeth Goldsmith Middleton always had sky-high social ambitions, not just for Kate but for all of her three children."
Andersen claimed it was Carole, 68, who convinced her daughter to switch from Edinburgh University to St. Andrews. The last-minute change reportedly occurred following the 2000 announcement that William would be attending the same school.
Two of Middleton’s former tutors previously confirmed to author Katie Nicholl in her book "Kate: The Future Queen" that Edinburgh University was the future royal’s first choice. Her two best friends had already applied and even found shared accommodations for the trio.
Author Tina Brown also claimed in her book "The Palace Papers" that "Carole’s fingerprints are all over Kate’s first move on the royal chessboard."
"It is unlikely Kate would be where she is today without her mother’s canny help in negotiating a royal romance," Brown wrote.
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"It was Carole who saw the possibility of Kate and William getting together from the very beginning," Andersen told Fox News Digital. "She encouraged Kate to become William’s roommate."
"Her mother did intentionally move her family up in the social strata by making sure her children excelled and were at the right schools and activities," British royal expert Shannon Felton Spence also told Fox News Digital. "The upper crust of British society is so incredibly small that it would naturally get Catherine and William in the same settings.
"Carole sent her kids to the right schools, put them in the right sports, brought them the right clothes. She did the leg work to make sure her children were included in the top echelons of British society.
"The only reason that [was] looked down upon by the British upper class is because it is such an American thing to do."
In the couple’s 2010 engagement interview, Middleton admitted that, due to her shyness, it took some time for the pair to get to know each other. As they spent more time together, they became "very close friends."
But it was during the college fashion show in 2002, "The Art of Seduction," that their relationship reportedly took a turn. For the runway, Middleton modeled a see-through frock paired with a black bra and matching underwear. That year, she and William moved in together with friends. In 2003, the pair got their own place.
After keeping their relationship under wraps for about a year, the couple went public in 2004. However, they split in 2007. According to Andersen’s book, it was the former Prince Charles who told his son to break up with Middleton after William allegedly told him he wasn’t ready to commit. Charles, who had grown fond of Middleton, was reportedly worried William was stringing her along. William later told ITV he and Middleton split because they were both "very young" and still "trying to find our own way."
The couple’s time apart didn’t last long. They got back together in 2007. Many wondered when William would pop the question. Middleton was nicknamed "Waity Katie" by the press because it felt she was waiting a long time for a marriage proposal.
"Carole gave her daughter advice every step of the way the entire decade when Kate was called ‘Waity Katie,’" Andersen explained.
"Perhaps most important, Carole helped Kate come up with the brilliant hard-to-get strategy that won William back after their headline-making breakup."
At the time of the couple’s budding romance, a Kensington Palace source pushed back against the narrative of Carole playing matchmaker, Town & Country reported. The outlet noted that the palace has never commented on the record about it. However, numerous royal correspondents have described Carole as a guiding force in her daughter’s life.
In 2018, Carole told The Telegraph "it doesn’t make a difference" what people think of her.
"I’m not really sure how I’m perceived now," she told the outlet. "Over the years, it’s proved wise not to say anything."
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British royals expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital the Princess of Wales wasn’t the only child she focused on.
"One can speculate on the involvement of Carole Middleton ‘plotting’ the future for Kate, given that she purportedly was instrumental in her other daughter Pippa’s marriage to James Matthews, a hedge fund manager," Fordwich said.
"Untraditionally, it was her that he met with before his proposal to Pippa and not her father, Michael. James was witnessed on many occasions being most friendly with Carole over the years earlier when both families were at his parents’ hotel, Eden Rock, on St. Barts."
Still, royal photographer and broadcaster Helena Chard stressed to Fox News Digital that "The Crown" is historical fiction and the character portraying Carole "was based on sensationalism courtesy of the tabloid papers." The narrative surrounding Carole’s story is all based on sources, she said.
"As soon as the media realized that Prince William and Kate Middleton were a couple, they tried to unearth everything to do with the Middleton family," she pointed out. "They were a comfortable middle-class family. … This was the angle the tabloids ran with. … How could a non-aristocratic girl date Prince William? Their main interest was Carole Middleton. Even though there is almost no factual material to base any stories on, the world harps back to Carole Middleton orchestrating Kate and William’s relationship.
"The truth of the matter is Carole Middleton embodies the art of discretion," she added. "The Middletons are private and respectful of all. These qualities were welcomed by Prince William. The family’s total support and discretion helped cement William and Kate’s relationship.
"Prince William had lost his mother, and Carole Middleton offered the love, protection and stabilizing normality that he yearned for. Carole Middleton is a rock. … She quietly supports [the couple’s] needs as a good mother/grandmother does."
For multiple royal experts, one thing is certain: Middleton and William’s romance was the real deal.
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William proposed in late 2010. And, in 2011, they married at London’s Westminster Abbey. William’s younger brother, Prince Harry, served as the best man. The Prince and Princess of Wales are now parents to three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
Fordwich said Carole and her husband are "hands-on grandparents" to the royal children. William, 41, is now heir to the royal throne.
Whatever role Carole had in her daughter’s romance, it worked, Andersen said.
"She obviously knew what she was doing," Andersen claimed. "Her daughter is now destined to become the future queen of England."