Was there anything Kate didn't excel at?

[Mommymoments]

Having read many articles Kate (pippa & James also) is so accomplished since she was tiny.
She is very sporty.. strong swimmer, excellent skier, hockey player, lacrosse, athletics, netball.. Plays piano very well & also was lead in schools drama production. Excelled at art.
It seems the Middleton's didn't do much in the way of equistrian sports?
Would love my dc to be as accomplished & well rounded. Can't afford Marlborough or any private for that matter!

Yes, they meet world leaders, but don't have to make any decisions with them, nor are they ever challenged on anything they say. The have to do some rudimentary reading up on who they are seeing, most of which is done for them and no one questions them. The ask questions and they are answered. No one says ' And what are you doing about x?' Yes, they may have a diplomatic role, but is based on their position, not their ability, so they host events for world leaders ( not that often), make some unimportant chit chat about their country and that is enough. Its in no way similar to what a diplomat does day in and day out. They should have learnt a language. At the very least French and definitely Welsh for William. Charles at least tried at this. It ws hardly an earth shattering revelation when William was made PoW. He could have done Duolingo on his apparently endless school runs or actually learnt Welsh while he lived in Wales! Why they have to be deified to this extent for being an ordinary bunch of not that bright people who have been extraordinarily lucky in life's lottery I don't know. Why do people have to pretend that they work harder than anyone else, their lives are so hard that they really suffer, that they are incredibly incredibly accomplished in every way?

Is it true that Prince William doesn't speak Welsh? that's really bad if so.

This is a load of bollocks. It did not become more difficult after William went. They have always had a low number of undergraduates so why would they take rubbish ones? Look at the numbers. Look at the requirements. I needed a qualification in Latin in the 1970s to attend.

Nonsense . I went to University in the 1970s and it was hard to get into in those days too .

"It was easier to get in then. It was after William went there that it became so tough."

Rubbish.

I needed a qualification in Latin in the 1970s to attend

If you were reading History it was extremely common for unis in the 70s to require Latin to O level.

No idea if you were - just a guess!

Obviously there were far fewer uni places available in the 70s. It was probably harder to get into average unis and for those educated at independent schools, easier to get into top unis.

@Mylovelygreendress @ICantbelieveitMeldrew

The proof that it wasn't as hard is she got in with AAB. That's not what you'd need to get in to a really tough uni even 20 years ago. So say what you want. The proof is in the facts.

You haven't commented on anything else I've said. Just the st Andrew's bit which makes me think it just irked you because you went there

To be fair to Kate, you're not taking twenty odd years of grade inflation into account. But it's true that History of Art is one of the softer subjects and still easier to get in for than hard arts subjects such as History, Classics etc.

@pokebowls "You haven't commented on anything else I've said. Just the st Andrew's bit which makes me think it just irked you because you went there"

I have already commented that grade3/4 is hardly "excellling" at music. And I have no idea how good she was at drama or sport. At a school where taking part in stuff, playing for school teams isn't unusual either. I just don't t like it when people use the presence of the royal family to suggest that St Andrews must be a rubbish university. It had always had a good reputation and been hard to get into.

I’m a bit stumped by the grade 3 or 4 in music thing being “normal for Marlborough”. It’s a senior school - at my prep school, Grade 4 in whatever (piano/clarinet/flute) was entirely normal for an 11 year old. So I don’t understand that.

@DuchessOfPort "I’m a bit stumped by the grade 3 or 4 in music thing being “normal for Marlborough”. It’s a senior school - at my prep school, Grade 4 in whatever (piano/clarinet/flute) was entirely normal for an 11 year old. So I don’t understand that."

It was just a comment on not indicating excellence. There will be a lot of kids not studying music at Marlborough who will have grade 4 before they join.

@pokebowls it makes me think it irks you because you were turned down 😂

I was having a quick google to see if Kate was in any uni sports teams at St Andrews (appears not) but an article said she went up to study Psychology initially. I haven't read that before. Is it confusion because of the broad first year at St Andrews?

I've read reports to that effect and yes, I agree.

Duke of Doolittle skives again.

The vast majority of Welsh people don’t speak Welsh.

AAB for Oxford (via interview only and not exam) in the early 1990s was pretty standard.

The vast majority of Welsh people don’t speak Welsh.

Can't believe I'm defending a royal but....doesn't that make it all the more remarkable Fred bothered to learn?

Fred?

Not everyone has an aptitude for languages. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.

AAB for Oxford (via interview only and not exam) in the early 1990s was pretty standard

Oxford has always had a low standard offer precisely because it selects through interview.

Not everyone has an aptitude for languages. It’s nothing to be ashamed of

But it is shameful given the resources these people have in terms of education, coupled with the enormous bonus of leisure to learn.

I've had my wrists slapped for 'Chuck' so I'm going by C's self-claimed nickie.

Do you have links showing Willy's lack of aptitude for languages?

TIA

No, because I haven’t claimed he’s lacking in aptitude. I said “not everyone.”

No, because I haven’t claimed he’s lacking in aptitude. I said “not everyone.”

In that case do you feel there's an explanation for his lack of application?

On his first visit to Wales after he became POW he told people that he was learning Welsh and offered a few phrases.