Whatever you do, don’t call Pippa Middleton a socialite. The Celebrate author, who is the younger sister of Duchess Kate, talked candidly about living in the spotlight thanks to her famous sister’s marriage to Prince William.
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Pippa Middleton on February 11, 2016 in London, England. Danny Martindale/WireImage
"I have had a few years of being in the public eye, and I have developed something of a thick skin," Pippa, 33, told the Daily Mail in her first major interview, published on Sunday, September 18. "But managing it all on my own has been quite hard. I have quite a lot thrown at me, such as being followed by people hiding behind cars and jumping out with cameras. It can be unnerving."
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While Pippa notes that she’s come to accept the paparazzi as her “new normal,” her fiancé, James Matthews, isn’t used to it.
“There's always something cropping up and that has to be managed on my own,” the 33-year-old explained. “It's been a real eye-opener for James. There have been quite a few hurdles to negotiate.”
The author, who is working on a diet and fitness book titled Heartfelt, accepts that this is now her “new normal,” but being labeled a “socialite” is something that still gets to her.
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"People see me as someone privileged who has used my position to advantage; that I don't really work, that I am a socialite — that word really irritates me — and that I'm a party girl without any substance,” the Edinburgh University grad concluded.
As previously reported by Us Weekly, Pippa got engaged to Matthews on July 17. The former race car driver popped the question to Pippa while on vacation in the Lake District of northwest England.
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The Daily Mail reported at the time that Pippa was “completely and totally surprised.”
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