User:Moonraker/PM

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Pippa Middleton
Born
Philippa Charlotte Middleton

(1983-09-06) 6 September 1983 (age 40)
Reading, Berkshire, England
Alma materMarlborough College and University of Edinburgh
Parents
Relatives

Philippa Charlotte "Pippa" Middleton (born 6 September 1983)[1] is an English party planner, socialite and sister of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. She is known because of her sister and through the reporting of society news.

On 29 April 2011, she was the maid of honour at her sister's wedding to Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, second in the line of succession to Queen Elizabeth II.[2][3]

Early life[edit]

Middleton was born in 1983, the second of the three children of Michael Middleton who was then a British Airways flight dispatcher, and Carole Goldsmith, who was a former flight attendant.[4][5][6] Her father's family came from Leeds, West Yorkshire, and one of her great-grandmothers, called Olivia Lupton, belonged to a business family active in Leeds for generations.[7][8] Carole Middleton's mother's family were labourers and miners from County Durham.[9] The third child of the family is James Middleton (born 1987), now a business man.[7][10][11]

In the mid 1980s, when her two eldest children were at a pre-school and the family was living at Bradfield Southend, Middleton's mother set up 'Party Pieces', a company which began by making party bags and which now sells party supplies and decorations by mail order. By 1995 the firm, run by both parents, was so successful that it moved into a range of farm buildings at Ashampstead Common,[12][13] and since then the Middleton parents are reported to have become millionaires.[14]

In 1995, the Middletons moved to Bucklebury, Berkshire.[12][15] Like her sister, Middleton was initially educated at St Andrew's School, Pangbourne, then at Downe House, a girls' boarding school in Cold Ash, and finally at Marlborough College, Wiltshire. She then followed her sister to higher education in Scotland, attending the University of Edinburgh to study English literature.[16] There she shared a house with Lord Edward Innes-Ker, a son of the Duke of Roxburghe, and with Earl Percy, heir of the Duke of Northumberland.[16]

Adult life[edit]

Pippa Middelton (far right) on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after her sister's wedding.

Following graduation, in 2008 Middleton took a job with Table Talk, a company based in London that organises events and parties.[17] Also in 2008, Tatler magazine named Middleton "the Number 1 Society Singleton", beating singer-songwriter James Blunt and Princess Eugenie.[18] Since then, she has often been described as a socialite.[19] As part of a duo with her older sister, Middleton has received wide press coverage, focussing on her social life and her lifestyle.[20][21]

The Daily Telegraph reported in 2010 that Middleton's parents had ambitious plans to expand their company, Party Pieces, and wanted their daughter Pippa to take an increasingly prominent role.[22]



Personal life[edit]

Pippa Middleton's coat of arms, based on those of her father. This lozenge shaped version, supported by a blue ribbon, denotes a spinster and can be used by no one else.[23][24]

For several years on Burns Night, Middleton has carried the haggis, accompanied by bagpipes, into a pub called the Old Boot Inn at Stanford Dingley in Berkshire.[25] She was reported in 2010 to be dating the City trader and former England cricketer Alex Loudon.[26][25] After her sister's wedding, The New Zealand Herald reported that she and Loudon were "all but engaged".[27]

Author Plum Sykes has written of her

Pippa is the luckiest one of all. She gets all the right sort of attention from men, fashion designers, hostesses and things, and doesn't have any of the duties. She's become a Princess without the bad bits.[25]



Sports[edit]

A skier, in March 2008 Middleton joined her sister Kate and Prince William for a skiing holiday in Switzerland.[28] She has also tobogganed down the 1,212 metre ice skeleton racing track the Cresta Run at St Moritz.[29] The multi-millionaire Trevor Baines claimed to have acted as her instructor.[30][31]

Middleton can handle a shotgun and in 2008 shot twenty-three game birds in a day in Scotland, commenting "my modest 23 wasn't so good actually and I found the partridge quite disconcerting, they are so small".[32]

Royal wedding[edit]

Following the official announcement of her sister's engagement to Prince William on 23 November 2010, the Daily Mail commented "Ironically, family friends of the Middletons say that everyone always thought that the sparkly Pippa rather than the quieter and less glossy Kate would be the one most likely to make a spectacular marriage."[33] Middleton was immediately tipped to be the chief bridesmaid at the planned Royal wedding.[3] This was confirmed and widely reported on 14 February 2011, although the title to be used for the position is maid of honour.[2][34] It has also been suggested that Middleton has taken on the role of the chief planner of the wedding itself.[35][25]

In film[edit]

The part of Pippa Middleton is played by Mary Elise Hayden in a TV movie entitled William and Kate, released on 18 April 2011. Camilla Luddington plays Kate, Serena Scott Thomas plays Carole Middleton, and Ben Cross plays Prince Charles.[36]

Ancestry[edit]

Middleton's ancestors include Sir Thomas Leighton (ca. 1530–1610), Governor of Guernsey from 1570 to 1609, and his wife Elizabeth Knollys (1549–1605), who was a cousin of Queen Elizabeth I.[37] Her later ancestors include The Rev. Thomas Davis, a Church of England hymn-writer, whose grand-daughter Olive Christiana Lupton was one of the grandmothers of Michael Middleton.[38][39]

Coat of arms[edit]

Coat of arms of Moonraker/PM
Notes
Pippa Middleton's coat of arms is based on those of her father Michael Middleton. Thomas Woodcock, Garter King of Arms, the senior officer of the College of Arms, helped the family with the design. The shield of arms in her version is lozenge shaped and hangs from a blue ribbon, this symbolises her unmarried state. This version of the coat of arms, can only be used by Pippa or her sister Kate as it denotes a Middleton spinster.[23][24]
Escutcheon
On a lozenge, per pale Azure and Gules, a chevron Or, cotised Argent, between three acorns slipped and leaved Or[24]
Other elements
The lozenge hangs from a blue ribbon, tied in a bow.
Symbolism
The dividing line (between two colours) down the centre is a canting of the name 'Middle-ton'. The acorns (from the oak tree) is a traditional symbol of England and a feature of west Berkshire, where the family have lived for 30 years. The three acorns also denote the family's three children. The gold chevron in the centre of the arms is an allusion to Carole Middleton's maiden name of Goldsmith. The two white chevronels (narrow chevrons above and below the gold chevron) symbolises peaks and mountains, and the family's love of the Lake District and skiing.[23][24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Kristi, Han (30 April 2011). "Pippa Middleton Bersinar di Pernikahan Sang Kakak" (in Filipino). Retrieved 04 May 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b Katie Jones, Prince Harry and Pippa Middleton to be best man and maid of honour dated 14 February 2011 at mydaily.co.uk
  3. ^ a b Ross Lydall, Kate Middleton's sister Pippa tipped as royal bridesmaid, dated 22 November 2010 at thisislondon.co.uk
  4. ^ Philippa Charlotte Middleton, p. 19582 at thepeerage.com, accessed 4 January 2011
  5. ^ Ancestry of Kate Middleton at wargs.com, accessed 4 January 2011
  6. ^ Claudia Joseph, The intriguing story of the woman who gave Kate her looks – and family wealth, in Daily Mail (21 November 2010) , accessed 4 January 2011
  7. ^ a b Claudia Joseph, Revealed: Secrets of the Middletons' money in Daily Mail (22 March 2009)
  8. ^ The Leeds connection in Yorkshire Evening Post
  9. ^ Christopher Wilson, Kate, the coal miner's girl in Daily Mail (22 December 2006), accessed 4 January 2011
  10. ^ James William Middleton at thepeerage.com, accessed 4 January 2011
  11. ^ James William Middleton at thepeerage.com, accessed 4 January 2011
  12. ^ a b Party Pieces Princess in News of the World dated 21 November 2010, p. 4 Cite error: The named reference "party" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  13. ^ About us at partypieces.co.uk, accessed 19 February 2011
  14. ^ Generation why-should-I? on The Scotsman dated 11 June 2008, accessed 4 January 2011.
  15. ^ Profiles: Kate Middleton in Hello! dated August 2001
  16. ^ a b Anna Pukas, Kate Middleton's eligible little sister dated 20 November 2010 at express.co.uk, accessed 19 February 2011
  17. ^ Welcome to the Firm at channel4.com, accessed 4 January 2011
  18. ^ Ashley Peskoe, Pippa Middleton: 5 Things You Need to Know at abcnews.go.com, accessed 17 February 2011
  19. ^ Kate Middleton's Sister, Pippa: A Socialite Butterfly at royalweddings.org.uk, accessed 16 April 2011
  20. ^ Katie Nicholl, First Kate, now sister Pippa splits from heir in Daily Mail dated 21 April 2007
  21. ^ Katie Nicholl, A Churchill snaps up the other Miss Middleton dated 26 September 2009 at dailymail.co.uk
  22. ^ Tim Walker, Wedding is good business for Pippa Middleton dated 17 November 2010 at telegraph.co.uk, accessed 17 February 2011
  23. ^ a b c "Royal wedding: Kate Middleton coat of arms unveiled". BBC News. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  24. ^ a b c d "Kate Middleton family gets coat of arms". The Guardian. UK. Retrieved 19 April 2011. Cite error: The named reference "Coat of arms2" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  25. ^ a b c d Catherine Ostler, She's better connected, more outgoing and has the body of a Bond girl. As 'Perfect Pippa' Middleton is chosen as Kate's Maid of Honour (18 February 2011) Daily Mail, accessed 19 February 2011 Cite error: The named reference "ostler" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  26. ^ Dean Piper, Kate Middleton's little sis is dating Alex Loudon, Daily Mirror (22 August 2010)
  27. ^ 'Her Royal Hotness' all but engaged, NZ Herald dated May 2, 2011, accessed 2011-05-02.
  28. ^ Pippa Middleton Goes Skiing In Switzerland With Prince William And Kate Middleton, March 2008 at look.co.uk, accessed 9 May 2011
  29. ^ Pippa Middleton at fhm.com, accessed 8 May 2011
  30. ^ Rowan Pelling, Royal wedding: the rise and rise of Pippa Middleton dated 1 May 2011 at telegraph.co.uk, accessed 9 May 2011
  31. ^ Pat Hurst, Rich List tycoon faces 14 years' jail for £110m shares scam (14 October 2009) at news.scotsman.com, accessed 18 February 2011
  32. ^ Top shot: Pippa Middleton bags the birds on Scotland hunt (23 November 2008) Mail Online
  33. ^ Pippa Middleton profile at mahalo.com, accessed 4 January 2011
  34. ^ Gregory Katz, Tamara Baluja, Royal wedding update: Prince Harry to be best man, Kate's sister Pippa is maid of honour at Yahoo Canada (The Associated Press, The Canadian Press) dated 14 February 2011
  35. ^ Sarah Bull, Kate who? Pippa Middleton enjoys a night away from royal wedding planning as she takes to the ice at Somerset House dated 24 November 2010 at dailymail.co.uk
  36. ^ William and Kate at imdb.com, accessed 19 February 2011
  37. ^ Christopher Wilson, Wills and Kate, kissing cousins! How the Royal lovebirds are related thanks to a Tudor tyrant so bloodthirsty he's been airbrushed from history, dated 3rd August 2010 at dailymail.co.uk
  38. ^ Reverend Thomas Davis at thepeerage.com, accessed 23 March 2011
  39. ^ Olive Christiana Lupton at thepeerage.com, accessed 23 March 2011



Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Category:Downe House Seniors Category:English socialites Category:Old Marlburians Category:People from Reading, Berkshire Category:People from Bucklebury