Hattie Rykens did her GCSEs at an independent boarding school in North Yorkshire. She had a great love for Drama and English, which her "outwardly confident" character showed during the rehearsals for the school's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Her life ambition, in her own words here, was to prove to herself and everyone else that she could be the best. Roughly translated, that means she wanted to be an actress.

She was one of the sportiest girls at Kings, coming in first place for the girls in the end of term cross-country race, and providing excellent displays of determination in the swimming gala and gymnastics display. In the outside world her favourite sports were lacrosse and tennis, both of which were not traditionally catered for in 1950s boarding schools like Kings. Hattie liked to live every day like it was her last, and was both confident yet careful in everything she decided to do.