The former First Lady has recalled her first meeting with the Princess of Wales in her new autobiography, describing her as ‘instantly likeable’
Former First Lady of the United States Jill Biden has revealed her first impression of Princess Kate in her tell-all new memoir. In an excerpt from her upcoming memoir, View From The East Wing, Jill recalled a trip to the UK in 2021 when she and her husband, then president Joe Biden, travelled to Britain for the G7 Summit.
Mrs Biden spoke about the trip five years ago in great detail, recalling her meeting with the Princess of Wales and their unique shared interest, as well as having tea with the late Queen Elizabeth and being told by officials not to talk about family, given the recent passing of Prince Philip.
The excerpt, shared by People magazine, sheds light on the personal exchanges between Kate and Jill, including advice the former First Lady offered to the future queen about navigating life in the public eye while maintaining emotional well-being.
Their initial encounter took place at a primary school in Hayle, Cornwall, where they bonded over a shared passion for early years education.
Writing in her memoir, Mrs Biden recalled: “When Princess Kate and I cooed over rabbits at a primary school in West Cornwall, I found her instantly likeable, very unassuming. She made me feel at ease. She seemed so grounded.”
The former First Lady also revealed her advice that she shared with the Princess of Wales. I encouraged her to keep a journal about her experiences,” Mrs Biden added. “She said she liked to draw and paint, but I said you can never have too many ways to privately express your feelings.”
Following their Cornwall meeting, the two women collaborated on a joint article for CNN championing the cause of early childhood development. In the piece, they argued that nations must fundamentally rethink their approach to the formative years of life.
“If we care about how children perform at school, how they succeed in their careers when they are older, and about their lifelong mental and physical health, then we have to care about how we are nurturing their brains, their experiences and relationships in the early years before school,” they wrote.
Mrs Biden also recalled having tea with the late Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, and revealed how ‘British protocol’ had urged the Bidens to not ask the monarch about family matters, given that their meeting took place just months after Prince Philip had died.
Despite the protocol, Jill wrote that the late Queen was happy to bring up her family and spoke of them with pride. She wrote in the memoir: “I studiously did not ask the queen about her husband or anything related to the royal family. As soon as we began speaking, though, she filled us in on her 11 great-grandchildren and the new one on the way.
“I was amazed that she poured the tea herself and wanted to talk about foreign policy. She had two new Corgi puppies to help her through the hard times. One came in, and she gave him half a smoked salmon tea sandwich.
“Her personal living room was filled with photograph after photograph of members of her family. There was nothing stiff or stuffy about the room, but it held a quiet elegance — much like the queen herself.”
