Shouldn't we expect just a little bit more of the Duchess of Cambridge.

[sweetgrape]

Never turned up for one single memorial service for the armed forces, but there at Center Court, Wimbledon, rubbing shoulders with a load of celebs,and entertaining Brad and Angelina Pitt at Kensington Palace. Is this what her royal life boils down to.

So there are a few here who admit to respect for the queen and her work ethic. How did the queen spend the first years of her marriage and as a young mother - she was heir to the throne at that point and not just married to the second in line to the throne. She was largely living in Malta, having left her baby son in England, and enjoyed a busy social life with few royal engagements.

But unless OP is a public figure with staff it's an irrelevant question, isn't it? Like the enquiries about OP's charitable commitment

Well, exactly, it's like the MP analogy I made earlier. Going by that school of thought, he should have asked me I had ever been an MP (answer: no) and that I therefore had a damn cheek to be questioning how he carried out his role (on my and other constituents' behalf!).

Exactly. The queen was in Malta and stayed in Malta. She made it clear thatvshexeascessebtiakkybfunctiiningbasxa private individual. She didn't pop over to watch the tennis and meet the Brad Pitt equivalent of the day - ie picking and choosing what public engagements she found enjoyable to do.

Maybe it's tattooed on.

Sometimes I feel a bit sorry for her. I don't buy the "she just happened to fall in love with a Prince" bollocks, I believe her whole upbringing - and Pippa's - was designed in a very victorian way to make sure they married wealthy men.

She hit the jackpot - but did any of her family really understand what life in the Royal family would be like? And was there any plan beyond getting married and having the babies?

She met William at Uni, but that wasn't his real life, just a bit of a holiday from it, protected from the media and free of any royal responsibilities. It's time for them both to grow up and get on with the job.

The last 'commoner' to marry in was the Queen Mum, and if I remember right she said no at least three times, because she knew exactly what she would be in for. Diana's family were the same, they didn't seem too bothered which daughter married Charles as long as one of them did, and she was a lamb to the slaughter.

Maybe the nearest equivalent is Samantha Cameron? She pops up at important moments beside the PM looking glamorous but doesn't say anything, because she's not the public figure, he is?

But what if she and William would secretly prefer not to be royal at all? But would never say so out of a sense of duty?

I'm looking at a couple who have the private money to have an amazing lifestyle doing nothing if they walked away from all the endless, boring engagements they go to. Many of their friends live like that. I think we should remember that William and Kate are people just like we are who perhaps don't want to be in this situation, enjoying the 'perks' and putting up with the negatives. Therefore they may not see their position as an incredibly privileged one but rather just the life William has been born into, in which they give up many freedoms and days/weeks they would otherwise have together to support charities and do tedious 'royal' jobs. If that's how they feel, they put a good face on it and actually do a huge amount if you look at their diary.

I'm a stay at home mum. If I was Kate, I would probably do a few things that interested me charity-wise but essentially I'd continue to be a stay to home mother and would believe I had the right to make that choice like every other woman in Britain. If someone sent me a ticket for Wimbledon, I would not think 'I've only been with the children lately and haven't done enough charity work in the last month to merit being treated like a princess...I better give it back.' I would bloody go. And I would not be impressed by people telling me I was the only woman in the UK who wasn't allowed to spend the majority of my time raising my children. She isn't dependent upon us for money and we didn't elect her.

But I was a bit [hmmm] by Zara shamelessly trading on her position to sell ostentatious pieces of jewelry. She's actually trying to profit from it.

I agree Saturnvista.

If Kate had shown a brilliant work ethic before the kids, I might give her the benefit if the doubt about her recent track record of choosing public engagements. But she had the most expensive and privileged education money can buy and then did nothing for 9 years (a short stint at jigsaw?) except wait for a rich man to propose. "Love" my arse - if Wills worked on the checkout at Tesco I guarantee she wouldn't have waited 9 years for him.

She actively pursued this life and IMO isn't keeping the deal, which as a minimum is to turn up at official services. She's a crap patron of charities too. It gives me the RAGE that she could use her incredible public profile to do unparalleled good and she doesn't. That's immoral in my opinion.

And asking what we do isn't relevant, because if I gave a speech on (for example) how it's a national disgrace that 250,000 women and girls last year have been identified by the NHS as survivors of FGM and there's not been a single prosecution, nobody would care. If I do or don't go to a memorial service, it doesn't raise its profile or make anyone feel special.

I simply can't understand it, if I had the power to shine a bright light on important issues, and make someone's day just by showing up and taking an interest, I'd never stop.

If William and Kate would prefer not to be royal, they should declare that, take William out of the line of succession, stop using titles, and stop taking any money or security protection from the taxpayer. Simple.

A short stint at jigsaw

There is where I'm ashamed to be British, you're so unreasonable. She tried to have a 'proper' job and the media coverage brought it to a standstill. So she went to work for her dad which is a perfectly legitimate way to work. My husband works in the family business - it's a proper job, he works hard.

If they withdrew from the royal family it would cause massive hurt in the country and the family. They would no longer have a forum for their charity work - of which there is a lot. Given William's upbringing and army background, you cannot expect them to see this as anything other than desertion.

If William worked at Tesco she would not have needed to wait nine years for him. He didn't want to get married because (apparently) he wanted to reach the age of 30 before doing the whole married royal thing. You have absolutely no idea if she loves him or not.

If I had her role, I'd see it as an opportunity to highlight my pet charities endlessly. I expect I'd become as unpopular as Bono. But we have to accept that many, many people don't see the world in the same way that we do. There are huge numbers of very privileged people who don't seem to. Not just her. Given how much we love to hate anyone who bangs on about charities, I suspect that her approach will ultimately get more done over time.

I wouldn't feel hurt if they stepped aside. We'd have Harry as King :)

She has done exactly what was expected of her, produce and heir and a spare. For that she gets to live a privileged life in a number of palaces.

saturn I truly doubt that doing nothing will get more done.

What did the Queen Mum do when she was Queen? There are some famous pics of her visiting bomb sites, and there's her famous quote about not leaving London...did she have her own role?

So what job does Pippa have now?

FWIW I don't think William & Kate get money from the Civil List (or whatever it's called now), they get an allowance from Prince Charles, via the Duchy of Cornwall.
William has had a career in the army, been committed to flying Search and Rescue helicopters (not for the unintelligent, and a very stressful job, by the way), and is now doing Air Ambulance flying. He has been, and is, away a lot (work and Royal commitments) and Kate was/is effectively a Services wife. She did work before being married, for her parents firm, and will I'm sure do a lot more on the Royal duties and charities front when her children are bigger. I think they both come over as really pleasant, committed people who are very much in love. They did admit ages ago that actually they would have loved to just stay in their rented cottage in Anglesey and be out of the public eye. But they can't, can they, they are bound now for a life of public service. Who the hell would want to do that?
Give the woman a break!!

Well said hermione

Kate was/is effectively a Services wife

Kate's experience of being a military wife would have been so far removed from mine, and every other military wives' in the country, because William's experience of being in the RAF (not Army) was different. Being a military wife doesn't stop the vast majority of us holding down a job, either!

Why, OP?

The impression I get of the Duchess of Cambridge is that she works incredibly hard at her role. Don't have a go at her for not working hard at other roles she doesn't have!

hermione She isn't doing nothing, she's doing a lot but not in the way that we would do it and perhaps not quite as much as we would do it (though actually I'd do less with young children than she chooses to because spending time with them is my priority). Look at her diary - how can you say that's nothing.

hormonal Why should she hold down a job if she doesn't want to (always supposing there was a job out there that could cope with the media). What if she sees the role she's in as working part-time or what if there is more to her work than being in front of the camera?

Who is Angelina Pitt, anyway? Not a name with which I'm familiar...
Oh I see, you think I should have used her own full name rather than her husbands......I knew there'd be one.
Holidayforever
Do you really believe she was serious about living in a little cottage in Anglesey? Somehow I don't think she hang around for 8 years or so to get her prince to have that kind of life. They can bow out any time they want, but they won't. They came across very much as wanting their cake and eating it.They love the privilege and prestige of their position, but are quite resentful of press intrusion and performing their royal duties.

I don't care for the royal family at all, but I don't intend to go to work while I'm on mat leave either.

Duchy of Cornwall is basically the same deal as the civil list though. Prince of Wales is granted income from it, but it's not like Charles owns it or has any real rights over it.