A former inmate who experienced a “life-changing” encounter sitting down with Princess Kate has disclosed what she was truly like. Her description echoed those of two others who have also enjoyed personal moments with the future Queen.
Catherine is marking her 44th birthday this week (January 9) and three individuals lucky enough to have met her all described how she is an excellent listener, astute and somebody who can effortlessly connect with people from all backgrounds.
This was evident when she conversed with Francesca Fattore at HMP Send in Surrey. Francesca, a former drug dealer, met the royal following the completion of a rehabilitation programme in 2020.
When asked by this reporter what Catherine was like in person, she said: “Do you know what? The one thing that surprised me about Kate was how she didn’t judge – she just didn’t care that I was a prisoner.
“The way she was with me, it was just like I was a normal person. You have so many people out there judging prisoners and ex-prisoners yet she supports rehabilitation there and I was just shocked that someone like her sat next to me and saw me as equal.”
She added: “I think the main thing that will stay with me… I said to her I was really nervous and I was shaking, literally. But she just sat down next to me and I said ‘I am so nervous’ and she said ‘don’t be silly it is fine’. She just made me feel so relaxed then as well.”
Francesca, who now helps former female offenders, was deeply moved by Catherine capacity to listen and show compassion. She described it as one of the most meaningful experiences of her life and highlighted how the princess displayed “genuine” interest.
Offering an example, she continued: “I said to her that prison was the best thing that happened to me and she said ‘why do all prisoners say that to me’. She was really shocked that going to prison was the best thing that happened to me.”
This gift for listening and understanding different viewpoints was recently highlighted by podcaster and actress Giovanna Fletcher.
She conducted a 90-minute interview with Catherine for her Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast in the same year the Princess of Wales met Francesca.
In a recent Times interview, Giovanna mirrored some of Francesca’s observations when describing what Catherine was like.
The author remarked: “She’s full of heart. I think she’ll be a queen who really listens, who leans in, who’s very aware of what’s going on – like the King with the King’s Trust.
“I think [the Prince and Princess of Wales] are going into it with their eyes completely open. I don’t feel like it’s ‘us v them’. We have to work together as a society to make that change happen [and] I think they get it. They understand things. And so, for that reason, I think it will be a welcome change.”
Royal commentator Richard Eden recently recalled his first encounter with Catherine, which occurred in 2007 shortly after her temporary separation from William.
He met a youthful Catherine at a social gathering and described her as “very friendly”, remembering how she was questioned about her feelings following the relationship breakdown.
Writing in his Eden Confidential column, he stated: “She made clear with her body language that she didn’t wish to discuss the subject, and the conversation moved swiftly on to happier and less fraught matters.
“At that time, Catherine was seen as a party-loving girlfriend of William, but my first encounter with her taught me that she was a tough cookie who wasn’t going to be inveigled into saying something she didn’t want to say.”
Echoing Francesca’s observation that Catherine could seamlessly interact with individuals from various walks of life, Richard noted: “Indeed, she reminded me of members of the Royal Family, much older than herself, who have the uncanny ability to make small-talk with anyone without giving anything anyway.”