The Times reported a palace source said that the meeting lasted about 30 minutes as the King was tired from a procedure the previous day. They added: “If you didn’t know what was the matter, you wouldn’t have any idea that he had any condition at all.” Both the King and Queen were “coping magnificently”
Harry is unlikely to have made any plans to see his brother, the Prince of Wales, with whom he has not spoken for months following several explosive media interviews after Harry’s memoir Spare and a Netflix series.
A convoy of cars believed to be carrying Prince Harry arrive at Clarence House on Tuesday.Credit: PA via AP
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told the BBC he was “shocked and sad” at the King’s cancer diagnosis, but that he was “hoping and praying” for a full recovery. He insisted that the monarch would “crack on” with his constitutional role.
“All our thoughts are with him and his family,” Sunak said. “Thankfully, this has been caught early and now everyone will be wishing that he gets the treatment that he needs and makes a full recovery, and that’s what we’re all hoping and praying for.”
In the statement released by the palace on Monday, a spokesperson said the King feels “wholly positive” about his treatment and will “continue to undertake state business and official paperwork as usual”.
The monarch has already started a schedule of regular treatments and is said to be receiving expert medical care from a specialist team. No date has yet been set for the King’s return to full public duties, but he is expected to only take on essential constitutional tasks for some months.
The palace has indicated that at this stage there will be no need for the King to rely on other members of the royal family to fulfil his duties as head of state. The present nominated counsellors who can legally fulfil his duties are the Queen; William; Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh; Anne, the Princess Royal; Prince Andrew, the Duke of York; Harry, the Duke of Sussex; and Princess Beatrice.
However, the royal household has said that as non-working royals Andrew, Harry and Beatrice would not be called upon to step into the role.
Former royal press secretary Simon Lewis said Charles’ openness about his cancer diagnosis contrasts significantly from how the news of his grandfather’s ill health was handled. George VI died on February 6, 1952 – 72 years ago to the day – which led to the accession of his daughter, Elizabeth II.
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Lewis said Charles’ openness about his cancer diagnosis had been his “style” as a new monarch.
“I think 20 years ago we would have got a very abrupt, short, statement, and that’s about it,” he told the BBC.
“And I think they’ve gone as far as they possibly can given that the King has had a diagnosis of cancer and, as a lot of people know, processing that is a pretty tough process.” Lewis said it was “not so much the crisis itself, it’s how you handle the crisis” that defines it.