The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh’s daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, is now in her second year of her English degree at the University of St Andrews, in Scotland.
But the university holds a very quirky annual tradition that she may have taken part in during her first year.
A lot of older students ‘adopt’ first-year students as ‘children’ and help to guide them through mentoring, in what are known as academic families.
According to the university’s website: “This ‘mentoring’ culminates in Raisin Weekend, when children are entertained by their parents and are encouraged to play pranks and silly games.
“On Raisin Monday, the children dress in embarrassing, flamboyant costumes, are given strange objects with a traditional Latin inscription, and are let loose on Lower College lawn for an enormous shaving foam fight.”
Hundreds of first-year students took part in this year’s Raisin Monday earlier this week.
St Andrews is famously where Prince William met his future wife, Kate Middleton when the pair enrolled in 2001.
William reportedly took part in the traditional Raisin Monday event during his first year, but he was not pictured during festivities at the time.
The Prince and his then-girlfriend Kate lived at St Salvator’s Halls of Residence, known as Sallies. But after the first year, the pair joined two of their friends in a rented two-storey Victorian terraced house – reportedly 13A Hope Street – close to the university.
And in their final year, William and Kate, who began dating in 2003, reportedly shared a four-bedroom cottage called Balgove House on the Strathtyrum Estate with friends.
The new Prince and Princess of Wales have returned to their alma maters several times since their graduation in 2005, including visiting just before their royal wedding in 2011.
And Kate reminisced about her student days during a trip to Nottingham Trent University last week.
She said: “I remember university for me was one of those great opportunities to try out new hobbies, and that has carried through now.
“I loved trying out new things, and challenging myself, whether (in) sports, music, or art.
“It’s one of the things with my kids too, just trying out new things, and university for me was when I learned to try out because there is so much on offer.”
She added: “I love being outside and being a part of all the different sports clubs, so doing things like hockey and tennis at university, but I also tried out the photography club at university, which was great and I met totally new friends, and that’s something I continue to love and enjoy now. It’s a good chance to try new things.”
