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Carole Middleton and Kate Middleton laughing in a shop. © Getty

Did Carole Middleton really send daughter Kate to St. Andrews to meet Prince William?

The Crown's sixth season examines Prince William and Kate Middleton's love story 

Megan Bull
TV Writer
December 15, 2023
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The Crown's sixth and final season has raised further questions of fact vs fiction. In new scenes, the show suggests that it was Kate Middleton's mother, Carole (played by Eve Best), who instructed her daughter to attend St. Andrews in 2001, after learning that Prince William had enrolled at the prestigious university. 

But, is that actually what happened – and did Carole Middleton really play matchmaker? Here's what we know…

Princess Kate pictured on graduation day at St. Andrews University© Anwar Hussein Collection/ROTA
Kate Middleton was originally accepted to her first UCAS choice – Edinburgh University – before applying to St. Andrews

After finishing sixth form, Kate was initially accepted to her number one UCAS choice – the University of Edinburgh – according to Jasper Selwyn, the careers advisor at her boarding school in England.

Prince William relaxes on the beach while at university© Getty
At the time it was widely known that Prince William had enrolled at St. Andrews University

However, Kate is said to have changed her mind at the last minute and opted to take a gap year instead, before applying to study art history at St. Andrews, where William was known to be attending. 

While the reason for Kate's change of heart has never been officially disclosed or commented on, there has been some debate about whether or not the Prince's attendance at St. Andrews factored into her own.

WATCH: "People were very protective of him in the town" St. Andrews lecturer John Walden on Prince William's university days

In Kate: The Future Queen (2013), author Katie Nicholl explains that admission to St Andrews had become particularly competitive at the time, following the news of William's enrollment. 

"It seemed every girl in America wanted to come to St. Andrews to search out the prince. Kate would have read the papers," explains the royal expert and biographer. "She would have known that William was going and that there was every chance they could be in the same program at the same time if she got a place to study there."

Tina Brown's book, The Palace Papers (2022), shines a light on Carole Middleton's involvement in particular. "It is unlikely Kate would be where she is today without her mother's canny help in negotiating a royal romance," declares the journalist and magazine editor. "Carole's fingerprints are all over Kate's first move on the royal chessboard".

Kate Middleton, Carole and Michael Middleton at Prince William's passing-out parade© Getty
Several royal biographers have suggested that Carole Middleton instructed Kate to attend St. Andrews

Further fuelling speculation, Omid Scobie, has also weighed in this year. Addressing the narrative in his latest book, Endgame (2023), the British journalist writes: "When Carole learned that Prince William was slated to attend the University of St. Andrews, she encouraged her daughter to turn down a spot at her dream school, the University of Edinburgh, take a gap year to study abroad in Florence, and enroll at St. Andrews the following year."

Nonetheless, the notion that Kate attended St. Andrews to meet Prince William has never been confirmed or denied, nor has Carole's involvement. Regardless, the royal couple got to know one another while residing at St. Salvator's halls, and after a year of friendship, they eventually started dating. 

MORE: Charles Spencer and Princess Diana's family are 'exhausted' with The Crown

READ: How The Crown's Dominic West transformed into Prince Charles: 'I have a real empathy for Charles'

On 20 October 2010, William proposed to Kate in Kenya with his late mother Princess Diana's sapphire and diamond ring, and their engagement was officially announced in November 2010.

kate middleton prince william university hall meals© Photo: Getty Images
The couple were friends for a year before they started dating

The couple tied the knot at Westminster Abbey on 29 April 2011, with the royal wedding watched by millions of people around the globe. 

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