Kate's parking blushes

Jan 4, 2007, 13:00 GMT

Kate Middleton, the girlfriend of Britain's Prince William, was given a parking ticket on Wednesday morning (03.01.07).

The 24-year-old was given the penalty notice by a traffic warden for illegally parking her VW Golf outside her Chelsea home in West London.

Kate saw the warden and pleaded with him not to give her the fine as she was about to move the car, but after a heated discussion she accepted the ticket.

If paid within 14 days it will cost the aspiring fashion designer £50, but after that it will rise to a fee of £100.

Kate was on her way back to work at clothing company Jigsaw's West London headquarters after the Christmas period when she was issued the ticket.

The brunette works as an assistant buyer for their junior accessories line four days a week.

Prince William is said to have urged his girlfriend to take the job, as he was allegedly concerned that she had not found full-time employment since leaving university and was being perceived as a professional shopper.

The couple both graduated from St Andrews University in June 2005 and William then began training at Sandhurst Military Academy.

Kate did try to set up her own children's clothing catalogue company but the business was forced to close in mid 2006.

Meanwhile, Bookmakers are so sure that William and Kate will announce their engagement this year that odds are now set at 2/1.

(C) BANG Media International