Why Kate Middleton's Mom Carole Was Dubbed The British Kris Jenner
Kris Jenner is an icon to combination stage moms and managers everywhere — she even owns the trademark for the term "momager," which is well deserved based on how hard she works. (As the meme goes, "The devil works hard, but Kris Jenner works harder.") However, there's another business-savvy mom across the pond who has been compared to Jenner following the final season of "The Crown," and that's Carole Middleton.
The mother of Catherine, Princess of Wales, is an entrepreneur like Jenner. She started a party supply company called Party Pieces in 1987, which increased her family's wealth, though the business was sold in 2023 after struggling with debts. However, it's widely believed that Carole also orchestrated her daughter Kate Middleton's path to university. It's thought that she encouraged Kate to go to St. Andrews University, like a certain prince.
"The Crown" explores how Carole reportedly played a larger part in Prince William and Kate's romance than people knew. Fans began calling Carole the British Kris Jenner after watching scenes where she plans Kate's university future (and her potential future with William). One fan on X, formerly Twitter, said, "Kate Middleton's mom is the British Kris Jenner #TheCrown" and included Jenner's "You're doing amazing, sweetie" gif. Another said, "Kris Jenner and Carole Middleton were both stewardesses @delta please I'm next." In a follow-up tweet, they added, "It's for my progeny.
There are conflicting reports on Carole's influence in Kate's relationship
There have been conflicting reports on how much Carole Middleton really interfered with William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales' relationship. Readers learned a lot about the royal family in Omid Scobie's book "Endgame." According to Scobie, Kate Middleton's parents felt she could rise the ranks of social status, "So they began orchestrating her life, ensuring she was at the right places at the right time and spoke the right way. ... Carole calculatingly placed Kate right at the center of young Prince William's world" (via Marie Claire).
Although Kate really wanted to attend the University of Edinburgh, Scobie explained that Carole said she should study abroad during her gap year and then attend St. Andrews University, just like William. He added, "Carole set things up, and Kate took it the rest of the way." Though Scobie made it clear that William and Kate's feelings for each other were true despite the interference.
However, royal broadcaster and journalist Helena Chard spoke with Fox News and shared a different take. She said the fictional Carole from "The Crown" "was based on sensationalism courtesy of the tabloid papers." Chard explained that the media tried to figure out why Kate and William were together and added, "Even though there is almost no factual material to base any stories on, the world harps back to Carole Middleton orchestrating Kate and William's relationship."
One expert corrected The Crown's portrayal of Carole and Kate
Another royal expert believes Carole Middleton was something of a mastermind but divulged that not everything that went down between the fictional versions of Catherine, Princess of Wales, and her mother happened in real life. Historian and author Clare McHugh told Business Insider how the scene where Kate Middleton was hesitant about following her mother's plan for school was not reflective of real life. "The two of them were as one all along," McHugh said. "The Crown" made it seem like Carole was running the show. "They decided this together," McHugh corrected.
In another Business Insider piece discussing the Kris Jenner-Carole Middleton similarities, McHugh didn't see anything wrong with Carole's work to get Kate and William together. She explained that since Kate didn't have a background in the aristocracy, "I think it's a tribute to modern Britain." She also called Carole "a very confident, very ambitious woman" and said, "It's a story of a dream that actually came true. And who doesn't dream for the best for one's children?"
Author and podcaster Kristen Meinzer also pointed out how the media has criticized Carole for her potential role in getting Kate and William together. Carole's nickname as the British Jenner shows that people still think that way. Jenner and Carole are two mothers with loads of ambition — whether that's good or not depends on who you ask.