- Hilary Mantel calls Duchess of Cambridge ‘bland’ and ‘machine made’
- Said impression of future queen was ‘jointed doll on which rags are hung’
- Author said Duchess was ‘born to breed’ and a ‘plastic princess’
By
Francesca Infante
00:30 EST, 19 February 2013
|
00:32 EST, 19 February 2013
A best-selling author who has based her literary career on writing about the Royal family has launched a bitter attack on the Duchess of Cambridge.
Hilary Mantel used her position among the novel-writing elite to make an astonishing and venomous critique of Kate.
Mantel, whose latest books are set in England’s Tudor court and have appeared on the New York Times bestsellers’ list, dismissed Kate as a 'machine-made' princess, 'designed by committee'.
Attack: Author Hilary Mantel called the Duchess of Cambridge a ‘shop window mannequin’ who was ‘designed by a committee’ with a plastic smile
Mantel, 60, also scorned her as a personality-free 'shop window mannequin' with a 'plastic smile'.
She
compared Kate unfavorably to both Anne Boleyn – one of her historical
heroines – and to Princess Diana, insisting both had more personality.
She
said Kate had gone from being a 'jointed doll on which certain rags are
hung' to a woman whose 'only point and purpose' was to give birth.
Mantel
said Kate 'appeared to have been designed by a committee and built by
craftsmen, with a perfect plastic smile and the spindles of her limbs
hand-turned and gloss-varnished'.
She said the Duchess was quite unlike Anne Boleyn, who was 'a power player, a clever and determined woman’.
Mantel
contrasted her appearance to Prince William's mother, Diana, 'whose
human awkwardness and emotional incontinence showed in her every
gesture'.
Pretty as a picture: The Duchess of Cambridge pictured at a viewing of her portrait, in which Hilary Mantel said she has ‘dead eyes’ and looked ‘strained’
Mantel, the author of Wolf Hall and Bring Up
The Bodies, the acclaimed novels
which detail the failure of Henry VIII's wives to produce an heir, used a lecture to examine the prospects for the future queen consort.
Mantel
said that when she first saw Kate Middleton, she struck her as 'a
shop-window mannequin, with no personality of her own, entirely defined
by what she wore’.
A HISTORY OF HILARY
Writer Hilary Mantel was born in Glossop in Derbyshire, England in 1952.
She
is the first woman to receive the prestigious British literary award, the Man Booker Prize, twice. She bagged
the first of the awards in 2009 for Wolf Hall, part one of her trilogy
about Henry VIII's adviser Thomas Cromwell.
The
second installment of the trilogy, Bring Up The Bodies won both the
Booker Prize and the Costa Book Of The Year Award last year.
Ms Mantel's comments on the Duchess of Cambridge's appearance comes shortly after she spoke about having body issues of her own.
Ms Mantel went from a size ten to a size 20 in nine months after she was diagnosed with severe endometrosis at the age of 27.
The treatment, which included surgery removing her womb leaving her infertile, caused her to gain four stone.
The 60-year-old author said she sometimes dreams of being thin again.
Prince
William's wife-to-be was as 'painfully thin as anyone could wish,
without quirks, without oddities, without the risk of the emergence of
character'.
She added: 'Presumably Kate was designed to breed in some manners.
'She looks like a nicely brought up young lady, with "please" and "thank you" part of her vocabulary.'
Mantel
spoke of Kate's appearance in her first official portrait since
marrying William, painted by Paul Emsley, which was unveiled last month.
She said: 'Her eyes are dead and she wears the strained smile of a woman who really wants to tell the painter to bugger off.'
Mantel went on to say that female Royals were 'at the most basic… breeding stock, collections of organs.'
St James's Palace last week criticized
a magazine for printing pictures of Kate's baby bump taken during a
break on the Caribbean island of Mustique.
And
they were furious last year when pictures of her topless on holiday
were printed in Italy – saying 'a red line had been crossed’.
But
Mantel suggested Kate could have few complaints about private pictures
of her being taken on holiday – observing: 'The royal body exists to be
looked at.'
'Some people
find them endearing; some pity them for their precarious situation;
everybody stares at them, and however airy the enclosure they inhabit,
it's still a cage.'
Mantel gave the London Review of Books lecture 'Undressing Anne Boleyn' at the British Museum on the February 4. The full version of her speech is to be published in the latest edition of the London Review of Books, out on February 21.
Official bodies: Hilary Mantel said the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge should not complain about invasion of privacy when pictures are taken of them on private holidays as a ‘royal body exists to be looked at’
Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, said Mantel's comments were unfair.
She
said that although Diana had at first seemed 'bland', later 'we learned
about all the troubles of her marriage and her personality began to
shine through. Kate might yet come into her own.'
‘She’s a shop-window mannequin, with no personality of her own’
- Hilary Mantel on Kate Middleton
She added that Kate's duties meant she 'can't do anything that might reveal (her) personality.
'They
have to be nice to everyone. They are probably stupefyingly bored but
they can't appear to be having anything other than a nice time.'
The
Duchess chose yesterday to give an insight into the causes that she
will support, hailing the start of a project which will see one of her
charities receive a huge financial boost from a philanthropic
organization.
Harsh: In her vicious attack on the Duchess, Hilary Mantel called her a ‘doll to hang rags on’, only days after speaking out about her own body issues saying she dreams of being thin
Prize winners: Hilary Mantel’s Bring Up The Bodies, which won the Man Booker Prize last year, and Wolf Hall, which scooped the award in 2009, are the first two parts of her Thomas Cromwell trilogy
She described
her delight at Action On Addiction – which she backs as patron –
becoming the beneficiary of the fundraising efforts of 100 Women in
Hedge Funds during 2013.
‘As painfully thin as anyone could wish,
without quirks, without oddities, without the risk of the emergence of
character'
- Hilary Mantel’s first impression of Kate
'Those
affected by addiction are in desperate need of the highest level of
care and treatment; Action On Addiction delivers this brilliantly,' she
wrote in a letter to mark the launch of the fundraising project.
'Whether
direct or indirect, the impact of addiction can be devastating.'
The Duchess, 31, will visit the addiction charity's Hope House treatment
centre, in Clapham, south London on Tuesday to meet women recovering from alcohol
and drug dependency.
Mantel, 60, studied law at LSE and Sheffield University, before becoming a novelist.
She
is author of more than a dozen books, including Wolf Hall and Bring Up
The Bodies, the first two parts of a trilogy about King Henry VIII's adviser Thomas Cromwell, both of which won the Man Booker Prize.
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Angry Brits in 3…2…1…Seriously though, why does the Duchess have to conform to Mantel’s views? Is that not narcissism, to demand that the world fit your outlook on life? Many leaders do have to subject their personality for the greater good. It is not a fun or enjoyable process. I am sure that the Duchess would love to cut loose, maybe call up a few French and Italian magazines and tell them exactly what she thought of them. But she won’t; she has class and accepted her position. Something Ms. Mantel appears to lack.
Cajun
,
Red Stick, United States,
19/2/2013 07:11
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Some extra nosy writers and journalists just can’t stand not being able to tap into a person’s private life. Kate is very intelligent and shows great self control to stop herself from being an open book which the media would undoubtedly pick apart and roast if given the chance.
butterprint
,
Denver, CO,
19/2/2013 07:11
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Sounds and looks like a hater!! She needs to try another angle if she’s looking for publicity for her book(s). Definitely not compelled to buy :/
FayLeeSeeah
,
US,
19/2/2013 07:06
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I think Hilary needs to learn the motto “If you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all” It makes you wonder if its all about the 15 seconds of fame
As for some of her comments, people in glass houses should not throw stones…
Seza
,
west aus, Australia,
19/2/2013 07:04
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Kate is gorgeous – some people just can’t control their envy and jealousy
Pilotrusty
,
Tamworth, Australia,
19/2/2013 07:03
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Perhaps instead of critiquing the appearance of others this dear lady could get her teeth whitenened, get her two vampire front teeth veneered, forgo that permanently surprised expression by letting her brows grow a little, find a better hair colourist/stylist and invest her fortune in some therapy to deal with her green tea with envy comments. Just saying…
abc08
,
SE Asia, United Kingdom,
19/2/2013 07:01
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What a nasty woman, I think Hilary needs to learn the motto “If you don’t have anything nice to say don’t say anything at all” It makes you wonder if its all about the 15 seconds of fame.
As for some of her comments people in glass houses shouldent throw stones…
Seza
,
west aus, Australia,
19/2/2013 07:01
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Hilary who??? It’s amazing what some people will say in order to be noticed – or in this case, have her books read. Seems smart to criticize and belittle people who aren’t in the same position to answer back. Would love to hear the Duchess reply! Perhaps it is just the insecurity and envy showing through when she targets the Duchess’s build. It is sad though. Perhaps she should stick to historical novels and stories where the subjects can’t fight back either.
Midas
,
Melbourne,
19/2/2013 06:54
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Looking at the two pictures at the top of the story, old Hilary is the plastic one. Obviously her celebrity is waning and it needs a boost, so pick on someone who is unable to fight back.
She should change her name to Hairy Lament more in keeping with her declining writing skills
She does look something out of a wax works horror show
david clayton
,
london, United Kingdom,
19/2/2013 06:54
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look up the definition of Bully…mantels name would be there!
alaskachick62
,
Haines, United States,
19/2/2013 06:53
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