Kate Middleton’s engagement to Prince William of England was only just announced, but on Wednesday she was already spotted out shopping for a venue location for the couple’s big day.
Specifically, Kate was seen checking out the 1,000-year-old Westminster Abbey in London during a secret visit late Wednesday night.
“Miss Middleton paid a short, private visit to Westminster Abbey in order to be able to consider it as an option,” a spokesman for St James’ Palace told the AFP news service.
“The couple wish for a little more time to be able to consult family members and make a decision for themselves,” the spokesman added.
Prince William’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, married Prince Phillip at the church in 1947. Diana’s funeral was also held there in 1997.
The Palace previously announced that the wedding will take place in spring or summer of next year, but it could happen as early as March, according to one new report.
While Kate remains in London, Prince William has already returned to work as a helicopter pilot at the Royal Air Force Base in North Wales.
NBC’s “Today” show visited the small town that Prince William and his fiancée call home, a place where they can even stop for a drink at the local club without any fuss.
“She was here for a good hour and it was quiet pleasing to have them in the establishment,” a bar owner told “Today.”
Martin Bashir of MSNBC, the journalist who famously interviewed Diana in 1995, told Access Hollywood Kate isn’t likely to encounter the same kind of paparazzi filled situations as Prince William’s mother.
“I think the British police service has learned from the past,” Martin told Access. “She will never be exposed in the same way that Diana was. She’ll never be allowed to walk through the streets and face paparazzi.”
Kate also has the support of Prince William’s media and security teams. Then, there is Prince William himself, who is keenly aware of his mother’s long, lonely ordeal, and as a result, is fiercely protective of Kate.
“Her and her family, I really want to make sure that they have the best sort of guidance and chance to see what life had been like or what life is like in the family,” Prince William told journalist Tom Bradby of ITV, who interviewed the couple following the announcement.
“I just wanted to give her the best chance to settle in and to see what happens on the other side,” he added.
At 28, Kate clearly has a maturity advantage over Diana, who was just 20 when she married the then 32-year-old Prince of Wales – Charles.
“She’d not been to college. She’d been to a boarding school and she was working part-time in a nursery,” Martin said. “She had nothing like the experience of the world he had.”
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