20 October 2023 , 22:00
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Kate Middleton had an awkward reaction to first meeting Prince William - one the future king can't actually remember.
The Wales' met during their time at St Andrews University as wide-eyed freshers and it was here they first fell for one another. She was studying Art History whilst the Prince started on the same course, before switching to geography in his second year. However, it was ending up in the same student accommodation that truly allowed their romance to develop.
In the two decades since they first met, the couple now have three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, and have been married for 12 years. But despite a loving marriage and family now - it may not have quite been love at first sight, especially for Prince William. The royal once confessed he couldn't actually remember his first encounter with Kate.
The couple were interviewed to mark their engagement in 2010 and asked about the fateful moment they met. Whilst Kate was able to recall the moment straight away, William struggled and said he'd have to "wrack his brains". But Kate admitted their first meeting left her bright red in the face.
The royal couple pictured earlier this month at a mental fitness workshop (PA)She said: "I actually went bright red when I met you and scuttled off feeling very shy about meeting you. William wasn't there for quite a bit of the time initially, he wasn't there from Fresher's Week, so it did take a bit of time for us to get to know each other. But we did become very close friends from quite early on."
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In that same interview, the couple talked about their brief split in 2007 before they got back together shortly after. William said: "We did split up for a bit. We were both very young, it was at university and we were both finding ourselves and being different characters and stuff. It was very much trying to find our own way and we were growing up. It was just a bit of space. It worked out for the better."
Kate confessed she wasn't happy about the break-up at the time, but in hindsight believes it was a good idea. She added: "At the time I 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're younger. I really valued that time, for me as well, although I didn't think it at the time."
Since then, Kate has opened up more about the early stages of the romance that will see her one day crowned Queen - something she never expected until she fell in love with William. When she joined a Dame Kelly Holmes Trust event in Bath, she took on the double Olympic champion in a game of bean-bag noughts and crosses - and, perhaps understandably, lost.
When the princess sat down for a private chat with a group of schoolgirls supported by the charity at St Katherine’s School in Bristol, she opened up the floor to questions about herself after listening to their experiences about home and school life. Asked if she wanted to be a "royal" by a pupil, the Princess replied it was something she had not expected but she "fell in love" with William.