Princess Catherine and Prince William, in their efforts to maintain privacy, reportedly employed various pseudonyms while traveling, a detail revealed in Robert Jobson's new book, Catherine, the Princess of Wales.
Jobson recounts that during their time as students at the University of St Andrews, Prince William would often whisk Catherine away for private getaways, checking into hotels under aliases. During the early 2000s, when they were roommates living off-campus with two other classmates, the couple would occasionally retreat to picturesque locations like H Grve, Sandringham, or a cottage on the Balmoral estate.
For their hotel stays, they sometimes used the names Mr. and Mrs. Smith—a choice that, while not particularly inventive, was intended to provide some measure of anonymity. This choice of alias amusingly coincided with the release of the 2005 film Mr. & Mrs. Smith, where Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt met and fell in love. However, given that William and Catherine graduated from St Andrews in 2005, their use of the pseudonym predates the movie's debut, and it is likely the film did not influence their choice. Additionally, Mr. and Mrs. Smith are common names in the UK, rendering the pseudonym relatively unremarkable.
In 2001, the same year he began university, Prince William also used the name "Steve" as part of a somewhat lackluster attempt to evade attention. Jobson notes that Catherine played along with this charade. As the public scrutiny of their lives intensified, William sought to enjoy a more typical university experience. In a similar vein, Andrew Morton, in his biography of the couple, recounts that during a vacation to the Seychelles in 2007—around the time of their brief separation—the couple used the names Martin and Rose Middleton. Morton describes this trip as a period of rekindling their relationship, during which they made a mutual agreement to focus on their careers and enjoy their lives, with the understanding that they would eventually marry.
In a poignant full-circle moment, following their wedding on April 29, 2011, the newly minted Duke and Duchess of Cambridge returned to the Seychelles for a private honeymoon, echoing their earlier use of pseudonyms and private retreats.
