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January 25, 2022

Kate Middleton quits job, leaves public rep exposed

Like Princess Di, Michelle Obama and Justin Bieber before her, the world’s little girls may look up to princess-to-be Kate Middleton for years to come.

152415_buckingham_palace_3 But outside the mind of earth’s teeny-bops, Middleton’s April 29th induction into the Royal Family will preface her having to battle a reputation, deserved or not, that she’s spoiled silly.

Sceptics have been out since Kate and Prince William announced their engagement last November (Who will pay for the wedding? How much will taxpayers be stuck with?) but news today that Middleton resigned from her day job may give them more fuel to their fire.

Yes, as you’ve all no doubt been losing sleep over, it was revealed Tuesday that Middleton stepped down from her job at her parents’ U.K. party store just before Christmas.

What’s this mean for the budget of the Royal Wedding? Well, probably nothing. Despite tradition dictating that the bride’s family usually pays for much of the nuptials, the Royals – ie. the Prince’s side – have been adamant that they’ll foot the bill. Taxpayers may have to fork over a little for enhanced security, which the much-hyped wedding will certainly require.

Yet one of the big questions surrounding the Middleton/Prince Billy gossip tale has been, How will the people take to the new princess?

The big public draw to Kate during the immediate aftermath of her Royal engagement was her commoner charm – she didn’t come from money: in fact, she still kept her middle-class job with her middle-class family. This wasn’t some silver spoon couple completely out of touch with the real world.

Now that Middleton has ditched her day job, though, it’s fit to wonder if this will change her public perception. As the Times of London pointed out, Queen Elizabeth earned bonus points for her frugality (she even collected coupons for her wedding dress back in 1947, the paper notes), a definitive connection to the U.K. people, despite the wealth at her disposal.

“If Middleton follows that example,” notes financial author Kimberly Palmer, “she’ll probably win over a few of her more hesitant subjects.”

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