[starttext]
By MICHAEL SEAMARK
The commercial channel’s political editor has become a close friend of the Prince, who chose him for the exclusive interview rather than the national broadcaster, the BBC.Kate: 'It's a daunting prospect but I hope to take in in my stride'
William: 'Giving my mother's ring means she won't miss out on excitement'
'When I first met Kate, I knew there was something very special about her'
Their very public appearance as a newly engaged couple was all but subsumed in a blaze of camera flashes and quickfire questions.
But a little earlier, in a quiet side room at Clarence House, William and Kate gave the first glimpses of the closeness of their relationship.
Seated side by side in their first interview together, the happy couple spent more than 15 minutes chatting informally to ITV News’ Tom Bradby.
Relaxed and often sharing a joke together, William and his bride-to-be revealed that they want to start a family.
And the Prince explained why he took so long to pop the question, saying he wanted to give Kate a chance to ‘back out’ if she felt she couldn’t cope with life as a future Queen.
Here is what the couple had to say:
THE ROMANCE
Bradby: When did you first set eyes on each other?
William: It’s a long time ago now, Tom, I’m trying to wrack my brain. We obviously met at university – at St Andrews, we were friends for over a year first and it just sort of blossomed. We just spent more time with each other, had a good giggle, lots of fun and realised we shared the same interests and had a really good time. She’s got a really naughty sense of humour, which kind of helps me because I’ve got a really dry sense of humour, so it was good fun.
Bradby: Kate, what did you think of William?
Kate: Well I actually think I went bright red when I met you and sort of scuttled off, feeling very shy.
Bradby: There’s a story that goes around that you had a picture of him on your wall.
William: There wasn’t just one, there was about 20.
Kate: He wishes. No, I had the Levi’s guy on my wall, not a picture of William, sorry.
We're very happy: Prince William and Kate Middleton give their first interview after announcing their engagementTHE 2007 SPLIT
William: We did split up for a bit. We were both very young, it was at university, we were both finding ourselves as such and being different characters and stuff, it was very much trying to find our own way and we were growing up. It was a bit of space and a bit of things like that and it worked out for the better.
Kate: I, at the time, wasn’t very happy about it, but actually it made me a stronger person. You find out things about yourself that maybe you hadn’t realised, I think you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you are younger and I really valued that time for me although I didn’t think it at the time.
THE PROPOSAL
William: It was about three weeks ago on holiday in Kenya. We had been talking about marriage for a while so it wasn’t a massively big surprise. I took her up somewhere nice in Kenya and I proposed.
Kate: It was very romantic. There’s a true romantic in there. I really didn’t expect it. It was a total shock... and very exciting.
Bradby: And he produced a ring there and then?
Kate: Yes.
William: I had been carrying it around with me in my rucksack for about three weeks before that and I literally would not let it go. Everywhere I went I was keeping hold of it because I knew this thing, if it disappeared I would be in a lot of trouble and because I’d planned it, it went fine.
You hear a lot of horror stories about proposing and things going horribly wrong it went really, really well and I was really pleased she said yes. It’s my mother’s engagement ring so I thought it was quite nice because obviously she’s not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement of it all – this was my way of keeping her close to it all.
Kate: It’s beautiful. I just hope I look after it. It’s very, very special.
Great significance: Prince William has given Kate Middleton his late mother's engagement ringWHY WAIT TO PROPOSE?
William: I wanted to give her a chance to see in and to back out if she needed to before it all got too much. I’m trying to learn from lessons done in the past and I just wanted to give her the best chance to settle in and to see what happens on the other side.
Lady in waiting: The couple prepare for yesterday's media photocallKEEPING THE SECRET
William: We’re like sort of ducks, very calm on the surface with little feet going under the water. It’s been really exciting because we’ve been talking about it for a long time, so for us, it’s a real relief and it’s really nice to be able to tell everybody. Especially for the last two or three weeks – it’s been quite difficult not telling anyone, keeping it to ourselves.
Bradby: Did you ask Kate’s dad and what did he say and what did your respective parents say?
William: I was torn between asking Kate’s dad first and then the realisation that he might actually say ‘No’ dawned upon me. So I thought if I ask Kate first, then he can’t really say no.
Bradby: What did your mum say?
Kate: She was absolutely over the moon. We had quite an awkward situation because I knew and I knew that William had asked my father but I didn’t know if my mother knew. So I came back from Scotland and my mother didn’t make it clear to me whether she knew or not, so both of us were there sort of looking at each other.
MEETING THE IN-LAWS
Kate: I was quite nervous about meeting William’s father, but he was very, very welcoming, very friendly, it couldn’t have gone easier really for me.
Bradby: Meeting the Queen?
Kate: I first met her at Peter ( the Princess Royal’s son) and Autumn’s wedding and again it was amongst a lot of other guests and she was very friendly.
Bradby: You clearly are tremendously fond of each other’s families.
William: ‘Kate’s got a very, very close family. I get on really well with them and I’m very lucky that they’ve been so supportive. Mike and Carole have been really loving and caring and really fun and have been really welcoming towards me, so I’ve felt really a part of the family.
DIANA’S LEGACY
Bradby: William’s mother was this massive iconic figure. Is that worrying? Is that intimidating?
Kate: Obviously I would have loved to have met her and she’s obviously an inspirational woman to look up to. Obviously on this day and going forward and things, you know, it is a wonderful family, the members who I’ve met have achieved a lot and very inspirational and so, yes, I do.
William: There’s no pressure, though. Like Kate said, it is about carving your own future. No one is trying to fill my mother’s shoes, what she did was fantastic. It’s about making your own future and your own destiny and Kate will do a very good job of that.
Relief: The couple said they were delighted to break the news of their engagementCRITICISM OF KATE’S WORK
Kate: I think I know I’ve been working very hard for the family business, sometimes those days are long days and I think if I know I’m working hard and pulling my weight, both working and playing hard at the same time, I think everyone who I work with can see I am there pulling my weight.
STARTING A FAMILY
Bradby: Kate, you very evidently have a close-knit family.
Kate: Yes. It’s very important to me. And I hope we will be able to have a happy family ourselves. They’ve been great over the years – helping me with difficult times. They are very, very dear to me.
Bradby: People are bound to ask... children, do you want lots of children? See what comes?
William: I think we’ll take it one step at a time. We’ll sort of get over the marriage first and then maybe look at the kids. But obviously we want a family so we’ll have to start thinking about that.
EXCITED OR TERRIFIED?
William: We are hugely excited and we are looking forward to spending the rest of our lives together and seeing what the future holds.
Kate: It’s obviously nerve-wracking, I don’t know the ropes, William is obviously used to it, but I’m willing to learn quickly and work hard. I really hope I can make a difference, even in the smallest way. I am looking forward to helping as much as I can.
source: dailymail
[endtext]
