MUSICIAN MIKE RUTHERFORD'S SOUTH AFRICAN ROOTS

Mike RUTHERFORD (62), founding member of Genesis and currently of the band Mike and the Mechanics, has some interesting connections to South Africa. Not only does he own a house in Cape Town's Bantry Bay, but some of his ancestral roots are also in the fairest Cape.

He was born Michael John Cloete Crawford RUTHERFORD on 02 October 1950 in Guildford, Surrey. His father, William Francis Henry Crawford RUTHERFORD, CBE, DSO (1906 Streatham, London - 1986, Surrey) married Annette Jessie Downing WILSON (1908 Cheshire - 1993, Somerset) in 1937 at Westminster, London. He was involved with the sinking of the Bismarck.

William was the only son of Colonel Nathaniel John Crawford RUTHERFORD, DSO, MB, RAMC (1874 - 1960, Surrey) and Lilla Roberta JACKSON (1883, Wynberg, Cape - 1979, Hampshire). William joined the Royal Navy in 1920 and served until 1956, retiring as a Captain. Nathaniel served in the Royal Army Medical Corps and was the author of two books, Soldiering with a stethoscope, and Memories of an Army Surgeon.

Lilla Roberta JACKSON was the daughter of Charles Henry JACKSON (1838, Devonshire, England - 1905, Vredenhof, Wynberg, Cape) and Johanna Reneira Catherina CLOETE (1855, Cape - 1895, Wynberg). Charles married Johanna in June 1874 in Cape Town. He served as a Captain in the 86th Regiment of Foot. They are both buried at St. John's Cemetery in Wynberg.

Charles and Johanna had the following children:

1. Anna Augusta born in 1875, died in 1949, married Francis William Cubitt CHIAPPINI
2. Henry born in 1877
3. Lucy Arabella Bettina born in 1878, married Frank HARVEY
4. John Sidney born in 1880, died 1927
5. Lilla Roberta born in 1883, married Nathaniel John Crawford RUTHERFORD
6. Dirk Cloete van Alphen born in 1885 at Alphen Farm, Constantia, died in 1976 at Silkaatsnek Farm, Brits. Attended Bishop's Shool in Cape Town. He was a member of the Springbok rugby team that toured the UK in 1906-07. He also played cricket for Western Province and Transvaal. Also known as Dirk Cloete JACKSON.
7. Charles Goss born in 1888
8. Munton Francis born in 1890
9. Raneira Catherina

Some of the children were baptised at St. John's Anglican Church in Wynberg, where family members are buried in the church's cemetery.

Johanna was the daughter of Dirk CLOETE (1820, Wynberg - 1894, Wynberg) and Johanna Reiniera Catherina VAN OOSTERZEE (circa 1823 - 1891). Her parents married in March 1843 in Cape Town. Dirk was also known as David. The family lived at Alphen Farm in Constantia.

The history of Alphen dates back to the early 18th century, when 5 morgen and 200 square roods of garden land were granted to Theunis VAN SCHALKWYK. More land was added over the years, until in 1765 it was consolidated into a single property some 16 morgen in extent. In 1850 Johannes Albertus MUNNIK bought the estate, and after his death in 1854, Dirk CLOETE acquired the estate.

The Cloete family of Alphen can be traced back to Dirk CLOETE who lived on the farm Nooitgedacht and farmed there until his death in 1833. Dirk's son married Anna Gesina BORCHERDS, and their only son married Reiniera Johanna VAN OOSTERZEE after which they moved to Alphen. Their descendants are known as the Alphen Cloetes.

Alphen has remained in Cloete family hands for over 150 years and today is owned by The Alphen Trust whose trustees administer the estate for the Cloete family.

a) Jacob CLOETE arrived at the Cape from Cologne, believed to be in 1652, in the service of the Dutch East India Company. Jacob was one of the first free burghers at the Cape, in August 1657, receiving a farm in October 1657, situated on the Liesbeeck River. A free burgher (vryburgher / vrijburgher) was a soldier or employee of the Dutch East India Company who was released from his contractual obligation to the Company and given permission to farm, become a tradesman or work for another employer. In 1671 he returned to the Netherlands, and later returned to the Cape as a Corporal. He was mysteriously murdered on 23 May 1693 by deserters near the Castle. He was married to Fytje (Sophia) RADEROOTJES, who arrived at the Cape in 1658 from Cologne with her brother Peter.

b4) Coenraad CLOETE (1663 - circa 1703) married Martha VERSCHUUR in 1693

c2) Jacobus CLOETE (born 1699) married Sibella PASSMAN

d2) Hendrik CLOETE (1725 - 1799) married Hester Anna LOURENS in 1753

e8) Dirk CLOETE (1767 - 1833) married first to Sophia Margaretha MYBURGH in 1792, and second to Anna Elizabeth VAN DER BYL in 1800 in Stellenbosch.

f1) Hendrik CLOETE (1793 - 1838) married Anna Gesina BORCHERDS (1794 - 1870, Stellenbosch)in 1813.

g2) Dirk CLOETE (1820 - 1894) married Johanna Reiniera Catharina VAN OOSTERZEE in March 1843

h?) Johanna Reneira Catherina CLOETE (1855, Cape - 1895, Wynberg)

Johanna Reiniera Catherina VAN OOSTERZEE was the daughter of Dr. Johannes Knockers VAN OOSTERZEE (1793, Cape - 1829, Rotterdam, Netherlands) and Augusta Wilhelmina Magdalena THALMAN (born 1804, Batavia). Johannes was a medical doctor in Cape Town and Leiden. He married Augusta in August 1819 in Cape Town. Johannes' father, Willem Johan VAN OOSTERZEE, was born circa 1765 in Sas van Gent, Netherlands. He was in the service of the Dutch East India Company at the Cape, where he was a merchant and bookkeeper. He married Reineira Johanna Catharina KNOCKERS (born 1762) in June 1789 in Cape Town.

Mike RUTHERFORD received his first guitar at the age of 8. He was a bassist and backing vocalist with Genesis in the early days, and often played rhythm guitar and twelve-string guitar for the band. In 1977 he became their lead guitarist. He wrote the lyrics to many Genesis songs. He formed Mike and The Mechanics in 1985, and in 2010 was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Furthering his South African connections, he bought a plot of land in Bantry's Bay from a cousin in 1995, and eventually built a house. He has also ridden the Cape Argus Cycle Tour, and is involved in a music education project with Pieter Dirk-Uys in Darling. Last year he recorded a new version of his song, The Living Years, with Cape Town's Isango Ensemble. He lives mostly in Surrey, England, with his wife Angie. They were married in November 1976 and have three children: Kate, Tom and Harry.

CHAD LE CLOS, SOUTH AFRICA AND MAURITIUS

Along with his winning son, Chad Guy Bertrand LE CLOS, Bert made headlines all over the world during the 2012 London Olympics. A BBC-TV interview with Bert straight after Chad won his gold medal, went viral on the Internet within hours. A new word was coined for Olympic parents - MADS (Mums and Dads). Bert, his wife Geraldine, and younger son Jordan, were pool-side for Chad's winning performances in the 200m butterly (gold) and 100m butterfly (silver).

Marie Joseph Bertrand (Bert) was born in Curepipe, Mauritius, one of 10 children born to Guy LE CLOS and his wife, Claude Giblot DUCRAY. Guy and Claude were married in Curepipe, Mauritius. The family moved to Durban, South Africa, after Bert's fifth birthday in the 1950s. Claude was the daughter of Marie Guy Felix Giblot DUCRAY (1893 - 17 Nov 1972 in Plaines Wilhems, Mauritius) and Therese Simone BARBEAU (died 16 Mar 1989 in Curepipe). Claude was the sister of Paul Giblot DUCRAY, a former bodybuilder and public figure in Curepipe. Guy was a former Secretary-General of the Mauritius Sports Association. Chad's great-uncle, Henry LE CLOS, was the Mauritian national shotput champion for many years. Some of the LE CLOS families left Mauritius for Australia.

Chad was born on 12 April 1992 in Durban. He attended Penzance Primary School and Westville Boys' High School, matriculating in 2010. He started competitive swimming at the age of 10. He also enjoys surfing, and was a speedy left-winger in school soccer. He’s the second-youngest of Bert's four children - Bianca, Justin (28), Chad and Jordan (14). Bert and his first wife, Corinne, had a daughter, Bianca (now 34). She is married to Pedro MATOS and they have a son, Rocco. After the divorce, she lived with her mother in Pretoria and later Port Elizabeth. Bert owned a butchery, Bert's Meat Market.

DANIEL RADCLIFFE'S SOUTH AFRICAN FAMILY CONNECTION

The British actor, Daniel RADCLIFFE, star of the Harry Potter movies, has some South African roots, as well as Polish, Russian, Jewish and Northern Irish roots. Daniel's maternal grandfather was South African, and his mother was born in South Africa. According to Daniel, his grandfather was not a pleasant man, and his grandmother fled with their 2-year-old daughter to England on a South African Airways flight in 1960.

Daniel and his mother.
Image from fanpop.com

Daniel Jacob RADCLIFFE was born on 23 July 1989 at Queen Charlotte's Hospital, London, the only child of Alan George RADCLIFFE (literary agent, and originally from Northern Ireland) and Marcia Gresham JACOBSON (casting agent). They were married in 1984 in London. Alan is the son of Teddy RADCLIFFE and Elsie May. Marcia was born in 1958 in South Africa, and was raised in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. She used the GRESHAM surname instead of JACOBSON. She was a talented ballerina, having won 10 trophies and several medals by the age of 11. Her parents, Wilfred JACOBSON and Muriel Jean Patricia GRESHAM, were married in 1956 in Paddington, London. Muriel was born on 10 May 1922 in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, the daughter of Samuel GERSHON and Raie Diana JACOBS. Wilfred was the son of S.H. JACOBSON. Muriel sailed to South Africa from London on 05 March 1957 onboard the "City of Durban". Her address in the ship's passenger list was given as 2 Milton Court, Station Rd, Westcliff, England. Wilfred and Muriel divorced in South Africa in 1958. She uses the name Patricia and lives in Essex, where she is an artist. There is a Wilfred JACOBSON who was born 18 Sept 1919 and died in 1994 in South Africa, divorced, but I have not yet confirmed that it is the same person as Daniel's grandfather.

Daniel and his father

There was a Wilfred JACOBSON, age 20, who sailed from Durban on the "Pretoria Castle", arriving in Southampton on 18 Jan 1952. Other passenger lists show Isaac Wilfred JACOBSON, age 42, sailed on the "Stirling Castle" from Durban, arriving in Southampton on 06 May 1938. He sailed agin, age 52, from Durban on the "Cape Town Castle", arriving in Southampton on 19 Mar 1948. He sailed again from Durban on the same ship, arriving in Southampton on 25 Apr 1952.

But impossible to know the ancestors of his father at the moment, apart from the famous "Great Uncle Ernie" killed in action during the Battle of Loos in France and his grandmother Elsie May Radcliffe (wife of the late Teddy Radcliffe), died in 2008.

Daniel's paternal grandmother was Elsie May, born in Banbridge. She lived in Cline Walk and died on 02 October 2008 at Craigavon Hospital, after taking ill at a church concert. Some of her family live in the Dromore area. Elsie is survived by her daughter Linda MCWILLIAMS (Dromore, married to Drew), son Alan (married to Marcia), three grandchildren Daniel, Stephen and Philip, and two sisters Jean WYLIE (Banbridge) and Eileen REID (Tandragee). Alan was a former pupil of Banbridge High School.

Daniel's great-uncle, Ernie, on his father's side, died at the Battle of Loos in France during World War I. Daniel played the role of Jack KIPLING, the 18-year-old son of writer Rudyard KIPLING, killed in the same battle. This was the ITV1 drama My Boy Jack.

Samuel GERSHON was a jeweller, born in 1894 in Hackney, London to Louis GERSHON and Jessie LIPMAN. Louis and Jessie married circa 1886, and emigrated from Eastern Europe to England, via Cape Town. Their children, John, Annie and Julia were born in South Africa. Louis was born in 1861 in the town of Wreschen by Posen, Germany, and died in 1919 in Hackney, London. Jessie was born in 1864 in Lurig, Poland, and died in 1941 in Hendon, Middlesex.

1901 England Census
Street Address: 93 Downs Road, Hackney
Lewis GERSHON, age 42, born circa 1859 in Germany, dealer in jewellery
Jessy GERSHON, age 36, born circa 1865 in Russia
John GERSHON, age 14, born circa 1887 in Cape Town, South Africa
Annie GERSHON, age 12, born circa 1889 in Kimberley, South Africa
Julia GERSHON, age 10, born circa 1891 in the Orange Free State, South Africa
Samuel GERSHON, age 7, born circa 1894 in Hackney, London
Alfred GERSHON, age 5, born circa 1896 in Hackney, London
Marie GERSHON, age 3, born circa 1898 in Hackney, London
David GERSHON, age 4 months, born circa 1900 in Hackney, London
Lizzie HANNON, age 26, born circa 1875 in Southampton, domestic servant
Lily GREEN, age 22, born circa 1879 in Hackney, London, domestic servant

1911 England Census
Street Address: 138 Clapton Common, Hackney
Louis GERSHON, age 50, born circa 1861 in Germany, diamond merchant.
Jessie GERSHON, age 47, born circa 1864 in Russia
Annie GERSHON, age 22, born circa 1889 in Kimberley, South Africa
Julia GERSHON, age 20, born circa 1891
Samuel GERSHON, age 17, born circa 1894, jewellers's apprentice
Alfred GERSHON, age 15, born circa 1896 in London, jeweller's apprentice
Marie GERSHON, age 13, born circa 1898 in London, scholar
Edward GERSHON, age 11, born circa 1900 in London, scholar
Gladys GERSHON, age 7, born circa 1904 in London, scholar
Harry GERSHON, infant, born circa 1911 in London
Gertie STREETER, age 15, born circa 1896 in London, domestic servant
Caroline TAYLOR, age 29, born circa 1882 in Walthamstow, domestic servant

Samuel GERSHON married Raie Diana JACOBS in 1921 in Rochford, Essex. She was born on 14 Sept 1895, the daughter of Emmanuel JACOBS, a fruit salesman. Samuel died in 1936 in Hertfordshire. Raie died in 1977 at Southend-on-Sea. Emmanuel was born 1867/8, the son of Charles Abraham JACOBS, a greengrocer, and his wife Miriam. Emmanuel married Julia JACOBS, the daughter of Frederick JACOBS, a fruiterer of Brixton, and his wife Sarah. Emmanuel died in 1937 in Essex.

1901 England Census
Street Address: 22 Tavistock Place, St Giles
Emanuel JACOBS, age 33, born circa 1868 in Strand, London, fruit salesman
Julia JACOBS, age 28, born circa 1873 in Strand, London
Maire JACOBS, age 6, born circa 1895 in Strand, London
Sadie JACOBS, age 5, born circa 1896 in Strand, London
Raie JACOBS, age 3, born circa 1898 in Strand, London
Charles JACOBS, age 5 weeks, born circa 1901 in St Pancras, London

1881 England Census
Street Address: 60A Atlantic Road with 1 and 2 Vining Street
Frederick JACOBS, age 34, born circa 1847 in St Giles, Middlesex, Fruiterer (Master, employing 2 men and 1 boy)
Sarah JACOBS, age 36, born circa 1845 in Covent Garden, Middlesex
Julia JACOBS, age 9, born circa 1872 in Covent Garden, Middlesex, Scholar
Hannah JACOBS, age 7, born circa 1874 in Covent Garden, Middlesex, Scholar
Louisa JACOBS, age 4, born circa 1877 in Covent Garden, Middlesex
Adelaide JACOBS, age 2, born circa 1879 in Covent Garden, Middlesex
Annie YOUNG, age 22, born circa 1859 in Windsor, Berkshire, Nurse Domestic Servant
Eliza EDWARDS, age 20, born circa 1861 in Scotland, General Servant
Sophia PHILLIPS, age 18, born circa 1863 in Middlesex City, Middlesex, Visitor

1911 England Census
Street Address: 15 Long Acre W C, Strand
Charles Abraham JACOBS, age 73, born circa 1838 in Cove
Mariam JACOBS, age 68, born circa 1843 in Field
Henry JACOBS, age 38, born circa 1873 in Cove, Commission Agent
Hannah Elizabeth JACOBS, age 28, born circa 1883 in Cove, Home Assistant
Marie Rose JACOBS, age 25, born circa 1886 in Cove, Dressmaker
Lillian Maud JACOBS, age 23, born circa 1888 in St Martins, Milliner
Gladyse OVERTON, age 17, born circa 1894 in Stow, Domestic Servant

Harry Potter in Cradock

In an unrelated (so far) story, a real Harry POTTER died on 27 July 1910 at the age of 46 in South Africa. He was buried in the Cradock Cemetery. He was the husband of Blanche Elizabeth BRUCE, who died on 29 December 1942 at the age of 82. The inscription on the tombstone reads: "In Sacred Memory of Harry Potter - died July 27 1910. Aged 47 years. I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee." This Harry was related to the 1820 British Settlers.

There is also a Harry POTTER near Tel Aviv. Corporal Harry POTTER was a 19-year-old British soldier in the Royal Worcestershire Regiment, who died in 1939 during fighting in Hebron and was buried in Ramle, south of Tel Aviv.

SOUTH AFRICAN CONNECTION IN DAVINA McCALL'S FAMILY TREE

Davina McCALL, the former Big Brother UK presenter and host of the Long Lost Family show, had a mother with South African connections. Florence Francois Catalina KOCK (born 22 June 1945, maiden name HENNION) passed away in Pretoria on 15 April 2008. The mother and daughter had a troubled relationship. Her parents divorced when she was three years old. Davinia went to live with her paternal grandparents, Dennis and Pippy, in Surrey. She saw her father Andrew McCALL, an events organiser for Portsmouth Harbour Authority, often but little of her mother in Paris, France. She moved in with her father and his second wife, Gaby, in London at age 13. In 1997 she married an actor, Andrew LEGGETT, in Westminster, London, but this ended four months later. Today, Davina has three children - Holly Willow, Tilly Pippy and Chester Micky - with husband Matthew ROBERTSON and lives in Woldingham, Surrey. They were married on 29 June 2000 at Eastnor Castle, Herefordshire.

Florence spent the last years of her life in Pretoria, in poor health after the death of her husband, Henri KOCK, a retired diplomat, in 2005. Davina supplemented her State pension. After retiring from the diplomatic service, Henri went into a property business with a partner but he lost everything. Florence's father was a doctor and her grandfather owned a chateau. He set up Paris' first mobile police unit known as the Tiger Brigades. Florence had a daughter, Caroline, when she was 16. After moving to London in the mid-1960s, she met and married Andrew McCALL, then a graphic designer. Florence was 22 when Davina Lucy Pascal McCALL was born on 16 October 1967 in Wimbledon, London. Back in Paris after the divorce, Florence worked as the manager of an Yves St Laurent boutique. By 1983 she had three failed marriages. She took a job at the South African Embassy in Paris, where Henri KOCK, himself three times married, was her boss. A few years later, he left his wife, Christiane and their young son Edouard, to marry Florence. In the late 1980s and 1990s, they lived in South Africa, Germany, Morocco and Israel. Edouard lived with them. His half-sister, Juanita, lived with her mother until 1994 when her mother was killed in a car accident and she went to live with her step-father Henri and Florence near Tel Aviv. She recalled Florence as a heavy drinker but when sober she was fun and a great cook. Davina met Henri when he was posted to Israel. Florence's daughter-in-law, Helene KOCK, recalls that Florence's greatest sadness was never seeing her grandchildren. Florence died at the Pretoria East Hospital from a lung infection, after a year-long battle against leukaemia. Florence volunteered with Alcoholics Anonymous. Constand DE VOS lodged with Florence during the last 18 months of her life and found her to be outgoing and friendly.

Henri was born on 09 December 1940. He died on 02 November 2005, and the last address was 684B Rhode Street, Faerie Glen, Pretoria. Henri and Nelmari TREURNICH were divorced in 1970. Henri and Arina SAMUELE were divorced in 1978.

In 2009, Davina took part in the Who Do You Think You Are? TV show in the UK, and found her long-lost French relatives in France. She met her mother's cousin, Francoise HENNION and her son Pierre, and her half-sister Caroline from Florence's first marriage. She also found out that one of her ancestors was rumoured to be an illegitimate son of George IV who left his family with huge debt when he died, and that her French great-grandfather, Celestin HENNION (1862-1915), was France's chief of police in the 19th century. The son of a farm labourer, Celestin joined the police and progressed through the ranks. He received the Royal Victorian Order medal from George V for organising security during a royal visit to France in 1914. On her father's side she found that her great-great-great-great-grandfather James Thomas BEDBOROUGH (1787-1860) was was apprenticed as a stonemason. When George IV ascended to the throne in 1820 he began an expensive renovation of Windsor Castle, and as the master stonemason, James oversaw much of this work. He became a property developer and mayor of Windsor. When he died, James left a complicated will and large mortgages that were used to finance his business and his family's Upton Park mansion. The stress of sorting out James' estate led to the suicides of two of his sons.

ARE YOU RELATED TO CHELSY DAVY?

According to the UK media, Chelsy Yvonne DAVY may be dating Prince Harry again. There are Scottish roots on her mother's side and Welsh on her father's side. Her family tree contains businessmen and a beauty queen. Her father, Charles, married Beverley DONALD, a 1973 Miss Rhodesia contestant. She placed third in the pageant and became Miss Coca-Cola Rhodesia and the face of Coca-Cola in many adverts across Rhodesia.

Chelsy's paternal grandparents were Anthony and Yvonne DAVY. Charles was born in 1952 in Masvingo, south of Harare. He has three brothers, including Paul. His father made some money from two hotels in Fort Victoria, the Kyle Hotel which he ran in the 1950s. Yvonne died in 1996 in a car accident. Charles attended Hartman House Prep School and St George's College, two of Rhodesia's top schools. He enrolled at the University of Natal but did not complete his degree. He returned to Rhodesia in the 1970s and was conscripted into the Rhodesian Army. After his national service, he started cattle ranching near Triangle in south-eastern Rhodesia. His farm was ruined when guerrillas rustled most of his cattle. In 1980 Rhodesia became Zimbabwe , and Charles started rebuilding his business by running fishing ventures on Lake Kariba and in the Zambezi Valley. In 1981 he married the 22-year-old Beverley. In the late 1980s he oversaw the purchase of Liebig farm in Matabeleland. This farm was carved out of the bush by the family of Baron Justus VON LIEBIG, the inventor of the Oxo cube. Charles sold the farm's cattle and brought in wildlife, transforming it into Lemco Safaris, a hunting business which made him a wealthy man. Charles' properties included the farm Alco Twalame near Bubi River, the farms Ripple Creek, Driehoek, Dyers Ranch and Mlelesi Ranch, and properties in Bulawayo, Burnside, a large thatched house where Chelsy was brought up. He owns HHK Safaris, the country's largest hunting and safari concession. He also bought fishing and diving licences in Bazaruto Island.

Beverley is the only daughter of George and Fay DONALD who bought land near Karoi in 1958 and called the farm Yeadon. She was born in Salisbury and attended Mabelreign Girls' High School. She worked later as a model and receptionist at Gallo Records. When her grandmother died, she inherited money as her grandmother had owned large chunks of Sandton. George served on the local council and the Tobacco Board. He was also a pilot. He built a school (with a teacher who lived on the farm) for his workers, as well as a club house. In April 2002, they lost their land due to the land grabs in Zimbabwe. George had built up the tobacco, cattle and maize farm from barren land. The looters, who moved in originally in November 2001, ripped out and took all the house fittings and furniture. Seven bedrooms and three bathrooms were gutted by using ledge hammers and chisels to remove toilets, baths, doors, windows and tiles. The family moved back to South Africa.

There was a Kenneth Neville DONALD who died on 12 August 1943 at the gae of 20 years. He was a Sergeant in the Royal Air Force 620 Squadron and is buried at St. Desir War Cemetery in France. He was the son of Andrew George and Mary DONALD of Salisbury. Possibly George's parents?

Beverly's two brothers, Ian and Mike, left South Africa to live in Australia. Fay lives in a Durban nursing home. George died of Parkinson's disease at the age of 80 in 2010. Mike, a civil engineer, had given up his career to farm and help look after his father, but that land was also taken by the government in 2002. Ian lived in Grahamstown before leaving for Australia.

Chelsy was born on 23 October 1985 in Bulawayo where she later attended Carmel Primary School and Girls College. Her brother Shaun was born in 1986. She was also a boarder at the UK schools Cheltenham Ladies College and Stowe School. She graduated from the University of Cape Town in 2006. She also did a law degree at the Leeds University. At the age of 18, Chelsy posed for Country Life magazine but didn't make a modelling career, prefering to go to university. She was first romantically linked to Prince Harry in 2004.