Princess Kate changed my life in prison – one thing surprised me about…
A former prisoner revealed the one thing that surprised her about Princess Kate after meeting her behind bars.
Francesca Fattore, 44, credits the Princess of Wales with helping to transform her life. She sat down with her inside HMP Send in Surrey after completing a 12-week rehab programme in 2020.
The ex-drug dealer has now said: “Do you know what? The one thing that surprised me about Kate was how she didn’t judge – she just didn’t care that I was a prisoner.
“The way she was with me, it was just like I was a normal person. You have so many people out there judging prisoners and ex-prisoners yet she supports rehabilitation there and I was just shocked that someone like her sat next to me and saw me as equal.”
Francesca grew up with a loving family in Reading but drugs threatened to destroy her life as a teenager. She eventually got hooked on heroin and crack before she started selling narcotics to get her own supply for free.
She found herself being locked up for drug offences in her 30s and she stayed on the same wing as Britain’s most infamous female inmates inside HMP Bronzefield.
But an inspiring visit from Kate during her stint in HMP Send was a moment that will live with her forever.
Giving further insight, she said: “I think the main thing that will stay with me… I said to her I was really nervous and I was shaking, literally.
“But she just sat down next to me and I said ‘I am so nervous’ and she said ‘don’t be silly it is fine’. She just made me feel so relaxed then as well.
“I said to her that prison was the best thing that happened to me and she said ‘why do all prisoners say that to me’. She was really shocked that going to prison was the best thing that happened to me.”
Francesca is now a content creator and runs UkExFemalePrisoner – a safe space for former female criminals to find opportunities.
She still credits her chat with Kate with helping to guide her future and she has taken inspiration with how she has handled her cancer journey with such bravery and dignity.
Francesca’s own mum is battling the disease and speaking about the royal, she concluded: “If I could give a message to her, it would be to say she is amazing.
“I would love to tell her again that I feel so blessed to have met her and it is one of the biggest things that has ever happened to me.
“She is an inspiration to so many women – she is amazing, genuine and I think she is an absolutely amazing woman.
