Future Queen of Belgium linked to ‘Nick from Rochdale’ at Oxford
Crown Princess Elisabeth and Nicholas Dodd are studying together at the university, and their bond is said to ‘transcend friendship’
Tom Ball, Northern Correspondent | Bruno Waterfield
Tuesday February 20 2024, 2.40pm, The Times
Princess Elisabeth is the eldest of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde’s four children
Princess Elisabeth is the eldest of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde’s four children
PATRICK VAN KATWIJK/GETTY IMAGES
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A student from Rochdale has been linked to the future Queen of Belgium after the pair were said to have become close while studying at Oxford.
Crown Princess Elisabeth and Nicholas Dodd met on their matriculation day in October 2021 and have since developed a relationship that “transcends friendship”, according to a Belgian newspaper.
Elisabeth, 22, who is the eldest of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium’s four children, is reading history and politics. Dodd, 20, from the Pennine village of Whitworth, just outside Rochdale in Lancashire, is reading history.
Both are students at Lincoln College, the alma mater of Rishi Sunak and the novelist John le Carré.
Nicholas Dodd said he applied to Oxford as he had “nothing to lose in trying”
Nicholas Dodd said he applied to Oxford as he had “nothing to lose in trying”
“They ended up in the same study group and there was an instant connection,” a source told Het Laatste Nieuws, a Dutch-language newspaper based in Antwerp, adding that they have been in each other’s company constantly. “Later they studied together, wrote essays and worked on projects together.”
Before going up to Oxford, the princess, who goes by the name Elisabeth de Saxe-Coburg at university, studied at Atlantic College, a boarding school set in a 12th-century castle in the Vale of Glamorgan, known for its liberal ethos.
Following her grandfather’s abdication for health reasons in 2013, Elisabeth became the Duchess of Brabant and heir apparent. Should she ascend to the throne, she will be Belgium’s first queen.
Last May, she accompanied her father to a reception at Buckingham Palace on the eve of King Charles’s coronation. The two royal households are related by blood, sharing a common ancestor: Franz, the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, who was the grandfather of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband.
Dodd was a pupil at Rochdale Sixth Form College, a high-performing state school with nearly 1,500 pupils. In an article for the school’s website, Dodd wrote that he had applied to Oxford because he felt he had “nothing to lose in trying”.
“I applied to Oxford because I wanted the opportunity to study at a world-class university,” he wrote. “It was also worth it because the experience developed my analytical skills so even if my application failed, the skills I learned will still help me now and in approaching my work in the future.”
He was previously a pupil at Beech House, a mixed fee-paying school in Rochdale, where he was head boy. In 2019, he was nominated for the Whitbread Memorial Prize, which recognises outstanding contributions to community life among independent schools.
A relative played down speculation that the pair are romantically linked, telling the Manchester Evening News: “They just go to the same college and study together. Just like all his other friends, I can’t comment any further.”
Anybody on this board know him?
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