Prince William has confirmed he will marry Kate Middleton next year

[phipps]

I wonder if we will get a Bank Holiday for it.

Middleton by name, middling by nature. YAWN

All that huge emerald makes me remember is the lies that were fed to the press during the infamous Di/Charles engagement press call, and the fact that Diana bit her nails to the quick and tried vainly to hide it as the world's press zoomed in for a closer look at the bling. I mean, it's hardly an auspicious ornament for a new relationship, is it?

Hang about - this gives the impression that I give a toss. Which I don't.

He kept making a thing about Wills making her wait and Wills said ok don't over egg it....

She looks a bit vacant tbh...very pretty of course, but as if she could be moulded into what you want her to be...which is of course the ideal for the Royals

I am a fan of the Queen as I think she does do a lot but Kate - meh

Wonder what its like to shag a Prince?? Do you lie there singing one day my Prince will come?

It's a sapphire, not an emerald.

Amusing that all the posters who hate the royals and claim to be indifferent to the wedding are on EVERY thread saying just that...

I keep seeing the news and wondering it they have really kinky sex. Always the quiet ones after all.

Hmmmmmmmmm I think I need to get out more.

Oh and another thing! Do you think she's the first one in several generations that isn't already related to the royals to marry a royal?

Nancy - yes because we are all feeling the cuts and stressing about finances - this kind of senseless extravagance and spending of tax payers money (which it will be in part) just gets on our tits

So she has never held a job, other than a few months at Jigsaw? She's more like the royals than most other upper middle class young women these days it seems.

Whose parents would allow a 30 year old to live at home, not pay rent and not have a job??

PS: and spend money going on holiday with your BF and friends, and buying clothes??

"Whose parents would allow a 30 year old to live at home, not pay rent and not have a job??"

Mrs Middleton. She raised Katie to marry into the upper classes and that includes never, ever doing commoner stuff like working.

Pussin - speak for yourself, I bet the overwhelming majority of the population don't feel the same way.

And not everyone is feeling the cuts.

I'm not

Yes, but when would be a good time for them to get married. I hope they spend lots of our money and have a great day!!!.

Well don't you sound Miss Smuggy from Smugland, Nancy

Glad to see empathy is one of your strong points too

It matches the empathy displayed on this thread for two inoffensive young people who have just got engaged.

I have empathy - I'm just not broke.

Georgimama - I am sure they are very inoffensive, but please don't pretend that what they stand for, represent and now reinforce is not inoffensive. It is the inequality that drives our society. Oh and they are not that young.

Nancy - yes, great empathy. I'm alright Jack.

Sapphire. Yes, so it is. Funny, I remembered it as green.

Oops. Forgetting I don't give a toss.

Devil?s advocate points (and I?m not a rabid Royalist, just an interested observer):

• seems contradictory to me for people to say they don?t want to pay for the wedding but do want a day off, no? If you resent forking out then fair enough but go to work like every other day!

• ?KM is dull / has done nothing etc?. I?m glad there are so many dazzlingly beautiful, endlessly interesting, high-achieving types on here who feel they?re in a position to criticise. Fact is, her background fits her pretty well for a life of boredom ahead. Anyone who?d had a really exciting, mountain-climbing, Nobel prize-winning run of things would find it extra hard to settle down to a routine of nodding and smiling at children?s choirs and asking polite questions as they tour glue factories. Be glad she?s doing it so you don?t have to.

• A figure was mentioned early in the thread of the Royals? costs to us. For one thing, that figure seemed relatively low to me in comparison with other bureaucratic costs, but also I wonder if in the interests of balance anyone can provide an estimate of how much they earn the country in providing a focus for tourism? No-one?s going to come here to see the presidential UK residence, you know. I've seen a few posts saying the income they generate from tourism is irrelevant but no data to even try to back that up except from LadyBlaBla.

LadyBlaBla ? on that point, was the top 20 tourism table UK (internal) tourist AND overseas, or what? And I don?t agree that the popularity of the Tower of London means people?d prefer it without the royals ? it?s visited, I would hazard a guess, as a historical relic with royal connections, not because people want it to revert to its role as a royal jail for the current crop!

Plus I do think it?s sensible to have formed what seems to be a stable long-term relationship and got properly used to one another before they take this step, given the Big Deal that a Royal divorce becomes. I wish them well.

Anti-Catholic, too. Imagine if the same rule held true for Jews and Muslims. It'd be unacceptable. But it's okay to make it a rule that Wills couldn't marry a Catholic and still be king.

Much like you, and I suspect all normal people, they most probably do not specifically tailor their every waking moment to whether or not they are perpetuating or fighting inequality.

They've just got engaged, for Christ's sake. It's not a political statement. They've even recycled the ring (very thrifty) and that gets sneered at. Frankly, there is little they could do other than commit hari-kari which would please most people on this thread.

Ladyblablah-blah blah blah.They do more then what you think.

She wears real fur and his family hunt deer for fun. They're awful people and I hope it rains on their big day!

I just don't like the monarchy. I hate the inequality. I hate the hypocrisy. I honestly think I would abdicate if I were in line to be on the throne - it is a farce and frankly embarrassing.

I haven't said anything other than the whole thing is a ridiculous delusion. I couldn't care less about the ring - minor point.

It's funny how when in the context of talking about monarchy, people become less embarrassed of sneering at the poor (Nancy). That's what I hate - people who have a good deal with life thinking they are superior to those who have had a shit deal in their life

And before you start, I have had a good deal in life. Yet I don't think I have the right to sneer at those who haven't.

does she wear real fur? I've never seen/heard it.

And thousands of deer are culled every year.

Rain on a wedding day is supposed to be indicative of a fruitful marriage. I doubt they would care about a spot of rain.