A new royal book by author Robert Jobson looks back at the Prince and Princess of Wales’ early days of their relationship when they split up before their ‘chemistry’ brought them back together

Before he popped the question, Wills and Kate got off to a rocky start (
Image: Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)

The Prince and Princess of Wales have a racy party to thank for reigniting their spark before they finally committed to one another.

While the world might remember watching on in 2011 as the couple tied the knot in a fairytale wedding at Westminster Abbey, Prince William and Kate’s romance wasn’t always smooth sailing. They appeared blissfully happy as they walked down the aisle 13 years ago, and are now proud parents of Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

But as the pair, now both 42, became an item in their early twenties at university, they found it difficult to navigate finding their feet in life whilst growing together as a couple. As examined in Robert Jobson’s new book, Catherine, The Princess of Wales: The Biography, the author recalled the events that led to their brief separation in 2007, and how they ended up back together again.

They ‘sloped off together’ after meeting again at a fancy dress party ( 
Image:
Copetti/Photofab / Rex Features)
In an extract serialised in the Daily Mail, the author says William called Kate to suggest they split up as they both needed a ‘bit of space’ and to ‘find our own way.’ “He was unable to promise her marriage. In an emotionally charged 30-minute conversation, they both acknowledged they were on ‘different pages’,” the author states.

“It was a devastating blow to Catherine, who felt doubly let down at being dumped over the phone. Though it wasn’t the first time William had called time on their relationship, it felt final.” They both went their separate ways for a while and enjoyed their newfound ‘freedom’ partying with friends in London’s popular clubs.

But after just two months apart, friends of Wills claimed he started to miss his heartbroken ex as he was holed up in army barracks over the summer. It just so happened that the two graduates were then invited to a fancy dress party through a mutual friend – now Grand National-winning jockey Sam Waley-Cohen.

Despite awkwardness surrounding the breakup, the jockey decided to invite both of them to his ‘Freakin Naughty’ themed party at his family’s Oxfordshire mansion. It was said William turned up in a policeman helmet, while Kate dressed up as a nurse in fishnet tights.

Jobson wrote: “They then spent the first part of the evening deep in conversation before hitting the dance floor, where they ended up kissing. When friends joked they should get a room, they sloped off together.” Speaking out about his role in their rekindling, Sam said in 2011: “There’s an idea that I was like Cupid with a bow and arrow.

They eventually married in 2011 ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
“People love the idea that somebody put them back together, but they put themselves together far more.” Jobson said that “the chemistry between William and Catherine did the rest” after their rendevous, however they kept their reconciliation a secret at first.

Despite their best efforts to keep the relationship under wraps, the pair were spotted kissing at an army party at barracks in Bovington, Dorset. And in July 2007 Kate and her brother James were seen at the Concert for Diana, held at Wembley to mark 10 years since William’s mother’s death.

The couple jet-setted away together in the September for a romantic holiday in the Seychelles – and it was during this trip that Kate demanded security if they were to make a final go of things, according to Jobson. The author claims they made a ‘secret pact’ to marry at some point in the near future.

By April 2008, William qualified as a pilot which meant he’d be spending the next five years working as an RAF Search-and-Rescue pilot. Two years on, when he was posted to RAF Valley, Anglesey, Jobson says that Kate, growing impatient, made it clear that she wasn’t happy going the long haul in a long-distance relationship.

They found a four-bedroom farmhouse near his base where they could live together, whilst Catherine worked remotely as a web designer for her family’s events business. While the future Queen was content with being close to her now-husband, she admitted she became lonely at times, particularly when William worked night shifts.

He finally popped the big question in 2010 during a trip to Kenya, in a romantic setting by Lake Alice. Reflecting on their turbulent journey to finally settling down and acknowledging their split, upon the news of their engagement, Kate admitted in an ITV interview: “At the time, I wasn’t very happy about it, but 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.” While William said: “We were both very young… we were both finding ourselves and being dif­ferent characters. It was very much trying to find our own way and we were growing up, so it was just a bit of space and it worked out for the better.”