Investigating if Carole Middleton Truly Orchestrated Kate and Prince William's Relationship

Written by Julie Miller

While eagerly awaiting The Crown's portrayal of Kate Middleton, fans did not anticipate a standout performance from a member of her family. Many would have guessed this role would have gone to Pippa Middleton but instead, Peter Morgan, creator of The Crown, draws attention to Carole Middleton, Kate’s mother, a one-time air hostess who later became a successful businesswoman.

In the episodes “Alma Mater” and “Hope Street” of Season Six, Carole, played by Tony-award nominee Eve Best, is seen promoting Prince William as a suitable match for her eldest daughter (played by Meg Bellamy). This plotline loosely recalls a previous story arc involving Mohamed Al Fayed attempting to orchestrate a romance between his son Dodi and Princess Diana. Unlike Al Fayed's character, Carole is portrayed as a gentler, more subtle matchmaker, offering Kate inspirational advice, strategic suggestions, and fashion advice.

The show cleverly implies that Carole had a significant hand in arranging her daughter’s love life with Prince William.

The reimagined story sees Kate confronting her mother about her interference, detailing several instances where she believes Carole has manipulated situations to position her closer to the prince. This includes her decision to apply to the University of St. Andrews instead of Edinburgh University (which is where all her friends were going), attending the same art school in Florence as William and also going on an expedition to Chile where William was present.

Annie Sulzberger, The Crown's head of research, and her all-female team questioned the validity of this perspective. They questioned whether Kate, a future queen known for her strength and athleticism, would change her life course so drastically.

Despite their reservations, their findings seemed to support this theory. Edinburgh was the preferred choice for her academic field; it was a better school, her friends were attending, and she had never expressed an interest in taking a gap year prior to this. These details led them to the conclusion that the media speculation about Kate's choices was accurate. They found it disheartening that other factors than William's attendance didn't seem to influence the decision she made.

In her book Kate: The Future Queen, Vanity Fair’s Katie Nicholl had also reached the same conclusion. She called Kate’s decision bold, risky, and unusual since there was no guarantee she would secure a spot in the history of art program at St. Andrews, which was oversubscribed due to William’s confirmed attendance. Tina Brown, former Vanity Fair editor in chief and author, concurs with these views in The Palace Papers, stating that it was highly uncharacteristic for Kate to risk her academic career on a whim. Brown attributes this shift in strategy to Carole’s influence.

Brown praises Carole for skillfully navigating her daughter's royal romance; remarking that without Carole’s intervention, Kate may not have ended up as a Duchess. She describes Carole as a determined woman who started off as a sales assistant and builder-decorator's daughter, met Michael Middleton while working as an air stewardess, and then worked her way up. According to Brown, Carole’s ambitions are inherited from Dorothy “Dot” Goldsmith, Kate's hard-working and socially aspirational grandmother.

Carole Middleton is often compared to Jane Austen's Mrs. Bennet and the upwardly mobile Hyacinth Bucket from television. Both comparisons fall short as Carole shows exceptional insight and strategy. Whenever her daughter Kate was under stress during her courtship with Prince William, she would find solace at home where Carole provided support and advice, always encouraging her to keep her eye on the ultimate goal. Carole's influence is clearly seen in Kate's initial moves within the royal framework.

In an interview with VF, Sulzberger, part of the team behind The Crown, talked about the dynamics between Carole and Kate. She dispelled the notion of Kate being a gold-digger at 18, emphasising that she understood and somewhat approved of her mother's actions. However, Sulzberger acknowledged the need for a degree of separation. This fascinating character research helped portray the Middleton characters as the producers envisioned them on the show.

Sulzberger goes on to describe how the series attempted to portray Carole as a self-made woman. It was through her and husband Michael's Party Pieces business that they were able to send their children to the prestigious Marlborough College. At school, Kate formed bonds with women from Prince William's social sphere. Kate had originally planned to attend university in Edinburgh until a sudden change of heart saw her settle for a different university.

Sulzberger highlights: "We wanted to show (Carole) as a mother wanting the best for her daughter. She has worked hard to earn her position in upper-middle class society. It wasn't her husband's work that brought them to where they are today, but her own dedication and enterprise."

As seen in The Crown, Kate and William found themselves under the same roof during freshman year. It is here that Kate catches Prince William's interest.

With her tan from a holiday in Barbados, her regular exercise routine, and her casual style, Kate exuded a fresh and confident aura. After some hesitation, William finally invited Kate to join him and his friends for breakfast. They soon discover shared interests and experiences, and Kate often helps William with notes for lectures he misses.

During their engagement interview, both William and Kate openly talk about this period of friendship in their freshman year.

A 2002 charity fashion show at the close of their freshman year is believed to be a crucial turning point in William and Kate's relationship. Prince William reportedly paid a significant sum to sit in the front row where Kate famously walked the catwalk donning a sheer skirt as a dress.

The piece’s designer, Charlotte Todd, didn’t choose Middleton to wear the dress; in fact, she says, she has no idea how Kate came to wear it on the runway. “I don’t know if Kate chose to wear this dress or if someone put her in the dress,” Todd told CNN when the dress was auctioned in 2011. Referring to its sheerness, she added, “I don’t know if it was her intention to be there in her underwear in front of the prince.”

But in The Crown’s retelling of the fashion show, Kate’s wardrobe decision is less of a mystery. We find her backstage, rifling through a rack of clothing less than a minute after a scene in which Carole tells her, by phone, “Heels, not flats…. It’s our duty to make use of the assets God has given us.” 

“Honestly,” Kate teases her mother at another point in the episode, “you’re worse than Mrs. Bennett.”