Read Online Kate by Katie Nicholl - Free Book Online Page B

morning run the next morning.
    Unlike at Downe House, Kate’s class year was small. There were seventy girls in her house and just fourteen pupils in “The Remove,” as her year was known. She lived in a dormitory with three others—the girls didn’t get their own rooms until they entered sixth form (the last two years of secondary school)—and in order to prevent them from becoming too cliquey, Mrs. Patching chose the dorm mates and rotated them every term. “It was a way of keeping things fresh,” she explained. “Catherine was able to settle in very easily, as soon as she joined. She got involved in school life and loved sport and music.”
    It wasn’t long before Kate’s sporting prowess was observed, and she gained a coveted place on the school’s hockey and netball teams. Much to her delight, she was made joint captain of the first tennis team with her friend Alice St. John Webster. Miss Gall, who was also head of physical education, recalled that Kate switched positions to goal attack in her netball and “was very good, but her hockey was stronger.” She also excelled in high jump and swimming.
    Eager to ensure their daughter was happy, Carole and Michael visited Kate regularly. They came to watch interschool matches on Saturdays, and as the spring and summer terms progressed, she began to come out of her shell. During the summer holidays, she was full of stories about her school life, eager to make Pippa, who would be starting in the new academic year, feel excited and part of the school community. The fact that Pippa had won an all-rounder scholarship to Marlborough was a source of pride to the whole Middletonfamily. “Pippa came into the school as a sports scholar. Catherine was very protective, but I don’t think Pippa needed much protecting—she was very successful,” recalled Mrs. Patching. “She was in the first hockey team from a young age, while Catherine worked her way up. She settled in easily and Catherine kept an eye from a distance. There could have been jealousy on Catherine’s part because Pippa was very talented. She was good at everything and sharper academically, but I don’t think Catherine ever resented that. She was always pleased for her sister’s success.” From her very first day, Pippa exuded a natural confidence, and along with her bubbly exuberance, she made friends easily, attained grade A’s effortlessly, and was known, as she had been at St. Andrew’s Prep, as “Perfect Pip.”
    Both siblings continued with their music. Kate sang in school concerts and played the flute and piano. “There was one occasion when Catherine was playing a game and Pippa was in a concert, so Michael and Carole split up so they could both support the girls,” recalled Mrs. Patching. “I remember once they played a duet on the piano in one of our house concerts, which we had on a Sunday and Michael and Carole were there for that. I seem to remember a giggle after the first couple of bars; they’d made a mistake and cheekily turned to the audience and said, ‘We think we better start again!’”
    Both girls were on the First Hockey team with Hannah Gillingham, Alice St. John Webster, and Emilia d’Erlanger, all boarders in Mill Mead House. “The girls all became close and we would have a lot of fun together,” said their hockey teacher, Jon Copp. “I used to tease them and challenge them. I remember Emilia was quite a character and cheeky from the start. She put a snowball down my neck in the first term. AliceSt. John Webster was a bundle of energy and Hannah Gillingham was one of the school’s best hockey players. They gelled as a group and became great friends. We used to have pizza parties at the end of term to celebrate our wins.”
    The only unhappy spell at Marlborough came when Kate was forced to stop playing hockey. She had discovered a lump on the