There was no mistaking the beautiful, dark-haired woman standing at the bar smiling and giggling as she downed yet another shot of rum.
I had just watched with astonishment as she danced like no one was watching, energetically gyrating to hits such as the Pussycat Dolls’s Don’t Cha.
But everyone WAS watching – after all, it was Kate Middleton.
The date was October 2007, at the well-heeled Raffles nightclub on King’s Road in Chelsea, and 25-year-old Kate was making the most of her life before it changed forever. She and Prince William had been on a break from their high-profile relationship, although reports had begun to emerge that the couple had rekindled their romance after a months-long pause, and they had spent the previous week together at Balmoral.
But her future as a potential Queen of England was far from certain. She was living a normal, independent life in London, sharing a flat with her younger sister Pippa – so why not let her hair down? And she was certainly making the most of it that night.
At Raffles, she and Pippa were laughing their heads off as they danced, drank and attracted the attention of a group of City traders.
Because I was there in my capacity as a gossip columnist for a London newspaper, I thought it was my duty to introduce myself to her. We are roughly the same age, so with no other ideas for an ice-breaker, I decided I’d ask her about her outfit.
The sisters were surrounded by enthusiastic men in suits as I approached. And when I asked Kate where she had got her lovely white top – which she had paired with a pair of elegant black jeans and brown knee-high boots – she flashed her beaming smile.
And when I asked Kate where she had got her lovely white top – which she had paired with a pair of elegant black jeans and brown knee-high boots – she flashed her beaming smile (pictured with Pippa that night)
Kate and Pippa were revelling in Raffles night club in Chelsea in 2007
Appearing delighted, she said: ‘I don’t know, I can’t remember.’
To my surprise, she then reached around to reveal the label and told me to look for myself.
It was from Reiss, the upmarket high street chain that she would often favour. In fact, the navy dress she wore for her engagement announcement three years later was from the same store.
She confessed she had bought the top in House of Fraser in Reading, the closest shopping centre to her parents’ home in Bucklebury, Berkshire.
Asked if she was having fun, she told me: ‘I’m having a great time, I am drinking shots and I’m dancing with my sister and having fun.’
It looked like it. She was knocking back white rum and liqueurs infused with rhubarb and apple, as well as bottled beer. Among the traders thrilled to see her that night was fund manager Alex Boyd, who enjoyed a dance with her.
She was undoubtedly the star of the show that night – you couldn’t miss her. In fact, when Don’t Cha came on, I was dancing next to her as she told another handsome man that the Pussycat Dolls was one of her favourite bands.
It was around this time that Kate was cruelly being dubbed ‘Waity Katie’, the implication being that she was waiting around for William to propose. But that night, I saw no sign that was the case – she couldn’t have looked happier.
The couple, who had met as students at St Andrews University, had briefly split in April 2007, with the future King later saying that they were ‘both very young’ and adding: ‘We were both finding ourselves and such and being different characters and such.’
That only lasted a few months, and it’s impossible not to wonder if, with hindsight, Kate was making the most of her time that night before she was absorbed into the conventions of The Firm for good.
But will long-ago nights like these be in her mind as she and William celebrate their 14th wedding anniversary on Tuesday?
Their plans are much more sedate than her party girl days. The couple are heading to the Isle of Dull – sorry, Mull – in Scotland where they will stay at a romantic, isolated self-catering cottage for two. Now in their 40s, and parents to George, 11, Charlotte, nine, and seven-year-old Louis, the couple will also be working, with engagements to highlight the resilience of local communities and the wild natural beauty of the region.
In and around picturesque Tobermory – made famous by the hit children’s TV show Balamory – they will visit a community hub, an artisan market and a croft where they will learn about sustainable farming. No doubt it will be a special trip as it will be Kate’s first wedding anniversary celebration since she was given the all-clear from cancer.
The couple, who had met as students at St Andrews University, had briefly split in April 2007 (Pictured at the university in 2005)
But will long-ago nights be in her mind as she and William celebrate their 14th wedding anniversary on Tuesday?
But the low-key getaway seems unlikely to have been something the 25-year-old Kate would have chosen, given just how far a cry it is from that raucous night out.
Raffles is just a stone’s throw from the flat Kate shared with Pippa, and she was not the only guest with royal connections who frequented it. Chelsy Davy, Prince Harry’s ex, was also a regular. In fact, one night I was with Chelsy while the prince called her repeatedly, asking her to meet him at a nearby bar, despite being on a relationship break. More recently, revellers there have included Gary Lineker’s son George and Kate Moss’s sister Lottie.
Back then, Raffles didn’t close until 4am, but Kate and Pippa called it a night at 3am. She was at the time working as an accessories buyer for fashion retailer Jigsaw, a job she had taken a year after graduating from St Andrews in 2005. A month later she quit as her relationship with William recovered from the split – as we know now, for good.
With her sister firmly in tow, Kate slipped out of the club’s back door to try to avoid waiting cameramen. It was all very low-key – she and Pippa, who is now married to millionaire hedge fund manager James Matthews, simply walked home unescorted.
The paparazzi got only a simple shot of them leaving. And in those days, cameraphones were still uncommon so I couldn’t document the astonishing scenes I had witnessed. I often joke that any images – or, even better, video – would have been so lucrative I might never have needed to work again.
But I suspect Kate, who rarely gets the chance to let her hair down these days, will be relieved there’s no evidence of that night.
