Kate Middleton teams up with Book Fairies for treasure hunt

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The Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William marked their 10th anniversary together as a married couple last month, with messages of congratulations sent to the pair from across the globe. In the decade they have spent wedded, the couple have gone from strength to strength – and seen their own popularity with the public soar as a result. The Cambridges are ranked second and third most popular royals, behind on the Queen, a YouGov poll showed.

During the pandemic they have been key voices inside the Firm, with some reports suggesting William was a driving force in ensuring the Royal Family continued to make public appearances – but doing so virtually.

But in the early part of their relationship, Kate appeared less confident during her own public appearances, which was demonstrated in her engagement interview in 2011, royal commentator Ashley Pearson highlighted.

Speaking on the Amazon Prime documentary Kate Middleton: Working Class to Windsor, Ms Pearson detailed how the Duchess of Cambridge was a “young woman who really wasn’t raised in the public eye”, and who wasn’t a “naturally gifted speaker”.

She continued: “So with all the attention on her, and she is quite shy – it just complicates things and makes it very difficult.

“The first time we really got to hear her voice was in the interview when William and Kate announced their engagement, when she wore that much famous and much copied Issa dress.

“William a couple of times kind of answered the questions for her that she was asked, or corrected her, and was obviously very protective of her.

“She was not comfortable – very clearly – speaking on camera.”

During the interview, Kate spoke of her surprise at William proposal, adding: “I really didn’t expect it all, I thought he might have maybe thought about it but I don’t know.

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“It was a total shock when it came and I’m very excited.”

William proposed to Kate during an October trip to Kenya, with the future monarch hiding his late mother Princess Diana’s sapphire and diamond engagement ring in his backpack.

It was important for William, the Duke said, that he used Diana’s engagement ring as he wanted to keep her memory alive by involving the Princess of Wales in the special moment.

William described it was the “right time” to propose to Kate, adding: “We’d been talking about marriage for a while, so it wasn’t a massively big surprise.

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“I’d been planning it for a while, but as every guy out there will know, it takes a certain amount of motivation to get you going.

“I thought it was quite nice, because obviously she’s not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement of it all; this was my way of keeping her close to it all.”

While the couple temporarily split in 2007, halting their relationship for less than three months, the couple’s affection for one another has always been clear during their appearances.

And although William often cuts a charming and calm presence in his public role, royal correspondent Camilla Tominey noted how he had a fiery side to him that was often eased by Kate.

Being able to confide in one another, and Kate’s willingness to “not upstage her husband”, helped the Duchess of Cambridge support William when he became frustrated, Ms Tominey explained.

She added on the documentary: “I think there is a huge amount of trust there, not just between them, but their circle of friends – their so-called ‘circle of trust’. Their closest friends, who would never dream of leaking anything to press, and really protect them.

“I think equally, one of the secrets of their success of their marriage is that they do seem much more equal than say, for instance, Charles and Diana.

“I think as well Kate has been very careful not to upstage her husband. I think she is the yin to his yang, in that he – although a level-headed, down-the-line kind of guy – can be prone to a few temper tantrums, perhaps.

“And likes to dig his heels in and knows his own mind. I think he can sometimes get quite angry, and one gets the impression that Kate is the one pulling him back, and reining him in, and saying, ‘Alright, let’s just keep calm.'”

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