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British RoyalsPrince & Princess of Wales

Kate reveals to schoolgirl what she likes about being a princess for school project

A schoolgirl has succeeded where countless others have failed over the years: she landed an interview with the Duchess of Cambridge.

Hannah Ritchie, a nine-year-old schoolgirl, is working on a biography of Kate for a school project. During a walkabout in Ballymena, Kate discovered this and asked her if she had any questions that would help her with her report.

“I asked if she liked being a princess and is the palace big?” Ritchie told Hello! magazine afterwards.

“She said she liked being a princess because she can travel around the world and meet all the lovely children. She gets to talk to them – she loves meeting and talking to the children.”

Valentine Low, the royal reporter for The Times, captured the exchange on video and posted it on his Twitter.

Kate can be overheard telling Hannah that she loves being a princess because, “I love working with young people. Everyone is so brave and strong in some of the places we go.

“It’s very nice to meet you. Good luck with the biography!”

Hannah is a student at the Ballykeel Primary School and attended Thursday’s walkabout with her classmates and teacher, Susan McKeegan.

McKeegan alerted Kate to the fact that Hannah was writing a biography about her for a school project in literacy class on writing biographies and said that her students were happy with the experience.

McKeegan gushed to Kate after she answered Hannah’s question that the student was “going to have a direct quote from you for the biography!”

The teacher told The Evening Standard that “Hannah was excited and really hoping she would get a chance to speak to [Kate],” and that she was “lovely and genuine.”

“It was fantastic,” McKeegan told The Irish Times. “It was such an experience for those children.

“They made banners and posters for [Will and Kate] before they came here today. They waited patiently and they all did us very proud.”

Hannah told The Irish Times that she had finished her biography, but after talking to Kate, she would have a little bit more to add to it.

About author

Jess Ilse is the Assistant Editor at Royal Central. She specialises in the British, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Royal Families and has been following royalty since Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Jess has provided commentary for media outlets in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Jess works in communications and her debut novel THE MAJESTIC SISTERS will publish in Fall 2024.