The royal family will emerge stronger from the King and Princess of Wales’ shock double cancer diagnosis, insiders insisted last night.
Sources said ‘things may look different for a while’, but senior royals are rallying to ensure the continuation of the monarchy’s ‘smooth sailing’ while two of its biggest stars receive treatment.
And while it is likely that the country will have to get used to a ‘new normal’ when it comes to the institution, insiders say this will be no less effective.
Today it can be revealed that Charles is ‘so optimistic’ about his treatment that he has already expressed hopes of attending Royal Ascot this summer, as well as some of the garden parties at Buckingham Palace honoring community and military heroes.
He also plans to lead a small family gathering at church in Windsor on Easter Sunday, although the princess and her family will miss this.
Sources say the King and Princess of Wales have been brought closer together by their shared diagnosis
The king is so ‘optimistic’ about his treatment that he has expressed hope of attending events this summer, including garden parties at Buckingham Palace
In a televised message on Friday, Catherine told the nation that she had begun a course of “preventive chemotherapy” at the end of February
A source said Catherine’s diagnosis was ‘a shock to her’
The princess said she reassured her three children, George, 10, Charlotte, eight, and Louis, five, that “I’m fine.”
The Prince and Princess of Wales spend Easter privately with their children
Sources say the king, 75, and his daughter-in-law, 42, have become even closer due to their shared diagnosis.
They had lunch in Windsor on Thursday, a day after Kate recorded a harrowing video message revealing that tests after major abdominal surgery in January revealed the presence of cancer.
She began a course of “preventive chemotherapy” at the end of February, she told the nation, adding that she had reassured her three children, George, 10, Charlotte, eight, and Louis, five, that “I’m fine.” ‘
Charles was already aware of the princess’ diagnosis, but it’s understood that given his own treatment for an unspecified form of cancer, the couple would have had a lot to discuss.
They have grown closer over the years and the king has great admiration for his daughter-in-law – with whom he shares a love of art and music – for bringing his son so much happiness and for her ‘genius’ as a mother. his grandchildren.
They were both in hospital in January after the king was admitted to the London Clinic for surgery on an enlarged prostate and was known to have visited Kate’s bedside several times.
A source also told the Mail yesterday that both the Prince and Princess of Wales were hugely ‘encouraged’ by the public messages of support they had received since the news was announced on Friday. They spend Easter privately with their three children.
The source said: “They are human beings. Every person deals with cancer completely differently. There is no fast forward button.
“In the case of the princess, as she said, it was a shock for her. She had to process the news, then she had to help her husband process the news… and then they had to get their three young children to a place where they could come to terms with it.
“And then she had to share it with the whole world. This is never a message you would want to share, but it was good that it happened when she was ready.
The Princess of Wales (pictured in November 2023) has revealed she felt it was her duty to tell the public about her cancer diagnosis
The Waleses at last year’s traditional Easter service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor
It has been confirmed that the family will not attend this Sunday’s Easter service in Windsor
It is understood William plans to return to work in a ‘meaningful’ way after his children return to school after the Easter holidays
The source added that it was right that Catherine had shared her news with the world when she was ready
“For her to come out and say that I need the time, space and privacy to recover is very significant and significant. And hopefully they will get that at Easter. They are human and this is a very human situation.”
Another source said that although it had been a “difficult” start to the year, the whole family had been touched by the public response.
“What’s amazing in all of this is that far from what the Republicans would have you believe, which is that people don’t really care about the royal family, the fact is that the whole world actually cares a lot about them,” they said. . What is important, insiders say, is that predictions of a crisis in the ranks could be wildly premature.
“It’s a temporary period with two of the star players out of action and this will only make them stronger,” said one. “The mood in the palace is one of optimism given the circumstances, it really is.”
It is understood William plans to return to work in a ‘meaningful’ way after his children return to school after Easter. “He will continue to balance supporting his wife and children alongside his public duties, as he has done in recent months,” a source explained.
Queen Camilla, as well as Princess Anne and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, will continue to undertake a range of public engagements. And the king himself will continue to fulfill his own duties, away from the public gaze.
It is understood he has a ‘full schedule’ of private and state commitments next week and plans to ‘ramp up’ his schedule in the coming weeks.
“While it is too early to confirm things – and it is of course relatively early in His Majesty’s treatment cycle – the patient is positive, the doctors are optimistic and the treatments are incredibly advanced,” the source said.
‘You can see for yourself that it hasn’t limited his abilities, it hasn’t affected his appearance and it certainly hasn’t reduced his work ethic.
‘The attitude of both the king and his team is commitment – with the buttons on.’
What the palace will continue to take into account, however, is the ‘risk threshold’ of dealing with large numbers of people – just like in Covid times.
Queen Camilla will continue to undertake a series of public engagements, while her husband, the King, plans to ‘ramp up’ his program of events away from the public eye in the coming weeks.
The Prince of Wales will continue to combine supporting his wife and children with public duties, as he has done in recent months
The palace will take into account the king’s ‘risk threshold’ of interacting with large numbers of people, meaning he is likely to attend events such as Royal Ascot while in the royal box.
This means that while Charles hopes to attend Royal Ascot, an annual event on the royal calendar, he is unlikely to mingle with thousands of people but may instead remain in the royal box where he will still be guided through the public can be seen.
The King’s former communications secretary Paddy Harverson said yesterday that the public must come to terms with the “new reality” that there are fewer working royals.
Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme, he also denied that the institution was ‘fragile’.
He said: ‘We just have to come to terms with the new reality, there are fewer of them. And so everyone has to kind of understand that they’re still going to be busy, that they’re going to get over this. I have every confidence that the king, who I know well, is incredibly strong, very resilient and a great spiritual person, so I know he will get through it.
“And the same goes for Kate, I think once they get through this difficult period we will get back to normal.”