Britain’s ‘most realistic’ Kate Middleton lookalike had revealed that ‘it wasn’t me’ pictured in a farm shop belonging to the Prince and Princess of Wales.

Professional Kate Middleton lookalike Heidi Agan, who has earned a living impersonating the royal for more than a decade, said she was not seen in a video of the Prince and Princess of Wales at Windsor on Saturday.

Heidi said on ITV’s This Morning: ‘I wasn’t there. It definitely wasn’t me and I think it was 100 percent Kate and William in the video.”

Heidi thinks it’s time for the public to leave Kate alone. She adds, “I think she’s doing well. She will be back after Easter, as Kensington Palace says, but until then she must recover and heal.’

The 43-year-old, who heads a dancing and acting school, admitted that her work as a lookalike usually dies when Kate is ill – although the current situation has led to the opposite reaction.

The video recorded on Saturday shows Kate carrying a shopping bag and walking quickly out of a farm shop with her husband – the first images of the future queen since her abdominal surgery in January.

The images published by The sun shows Kate walking quickly with a bag of groceries and talking animatedly with her husband on Saturday afternoon.

Heidi said that when the video hit the headlines yesterday, she was enjoying a cup of tea and coffee with her partner when her social media went ‘crazy’.

She added: ‘My partner and I woke up yesterday morning with tea and coffee and we couldn’t quite believe how angry my social media had become.

‘I didn’t know anything about it, but overnight it just went a bit crazy – it was a strange 24 hours.’

Heidi added that the video couldn’t possibly be hers as she was working at her other job at her dance school on Saturday.

‘I work here at the main office, so I was here on Saturday. There’s no way I could have been 80 miles away in Windsor.

‘There’s a lot going on here on Saturday, lots of witnesses!

Heidi added: ‘If the royal family is busy, that spills over into our lives too.

‘When she appears in the press, there is a lot of interest in my work. Normally the work dries up out of respect when she is sick, but this time it has gone the other way, which is really unusual.’

Heidi previously revealed how she chases Zara and TK Max to keep up with Kate’s expensive wardrobe, and can’t go out without being asked for a selfie.

The royal impersonator has been working professionally as a Kate lookalike at parties, meet & greets and other performances since 2012.

She now believes conspiracy theories about the princess’ health have gone too far, adding: “If the surgery is something she wanted to keep private, then [Kensington Palace] are right not to share more details.”

The film was a balm for millions of people in Britain and around the world, but crazy conspiracy theories are still swirling about Kate, despite The Sun’s video proving she is doing well.

The shopper who filmed the couple also claims it wasn’t Kate in the HD footage.

Former England cricket star Kevin Pietersen, 43, also slammed the ‘absolutely absurd’ and ‘bulls**t’ conspiracy theories about Kate and admitted he sees the Prince and Princess of Wales ‘most days’.

KP said: ‘The conspiracy theories surrounding Kate are absolutely absurd. We see W&K [William and Kate] most days and also in the last few days!

“I can’t believe people would be so ridiculous and cruel if they wrote BULLS**T on this platform, which is outright lies.

‘W&K are the most wonderful parents and as normal/humble as can be.

‘Let K who is recovering from surgery recover. Leave her and her beautiful family alone.”

Kevin Pietersen has previously tweeted about teaching cricket at Lambrook School, where William and Kate send their children.

It was previously reported that KP’s son Dylan, said to be a star cricketer in the making, is also heading to Lambrook.

The Prince and Princess of Wales clearly felt “at ease” being seen in public, otherwise they wouldn’t have gone out to buy bread together at their local shop, according to Jack Royston, chief royal correspondent for Newsweek.

He said, ‘They were not born yesterday. They do understand that they are at the center of a huge international news story. They must have felt comfortable with the risk of being photographed.

‘It’s so clearly Kate in the images. She is recovering from surgery and has no makeup on. She could take a DNA test and people wouldn’t believe it was her.

‘It has been very hard for a woman who has so much attention on her. She’s under so much pressure to look perfect, but she can’t be expected to look perfect all the time. It’s impossible and not fair.’

A source close to William made it clear yesterday that he was determined to ignore the speculation surrounding Kate, telling MailOnline: ‘His focus today is Homewards.’

MailOnline understands that the couple have become aware of much of what is being said and are deeply saddened and saddened by the often vile speculation.

I was on top of the world. Literally. The summit of Everest, 8,848-metres high. It had taken six gruelling days and nights to get there after leaving base camp and the final hours along the summit ridge had been terrifying – the rocky track as thin as thread with a vertical drop either side. Dead bodies littered the way.

When I finally reached the prayer flags fluttering in the wind at the top, I sat down exhausted.

The view was unarguably magnificent – blue sky against white snow, surrounded by the most glorious mountains in the world. I hadn’t expected to feel triumphant. But I thought there would be a sense of relief that I’d finally made it.

Instead, I just felt numb. And I knew I still had to get down. Descending high mountains is just as difficult and dangerous as climbing up them. As it turns out, I was right to be anxious, something terrible was yet to happen.

I wondered how I got there. A 51-year-old woman from north London who is the most unlikely athlete.

At school, I was the arty one, not the sporty one. I never wanted to be a mountaineer. But somehow I had become a record-breaking adventurer. The first woman in the world to achieve ‘The Sea, Street, Summit Challenge’ – which is to swim the English Channel, run a road marathon and summit Mount Everest.

However, this wasn’t what I had always wanted. What I always wanted was to be a mother.

My long, hard journey to the summit of Everest started when I was 34. The day my partner, Peter, and I looked at each other and said: ‘Let’s make a family.’ We had been together for several years. We both had successful careers in the arts world. I had recently become Chief Executive of a London theatre – the Lyric Hammersmith – and I mistakenly thought I was one of the women who could ‘have it all’.

So we threw away the contraception and started trying. It was fun at first – making love for a purpose as well as for pleasure. Like so many couples we thought that soon we’d see a double line on a pregnancy test.

But after a year nothing had happened. We went to our first fertility clinic and were diagnosed with ‘unexplained infertility’. Around a third of all couples who struggle to conceive receive this frustrating diagnosis. We started on IVF. We got pregnant first time. But lost the baby early on. We went through another round. The same thing happened.

IVF was the first gruelling physical and mental endurance journey I undertook. It was a rollercoaster I rode for ten years, mostly in secret. Infertility is shrouded in shame. I didn’t tell family, friends or colleagues.

My job was often glamorous, mixing with famous directors and actors. But at first night theatre parties, behind my smiles for the camera, I was going through the saddest years of my life.

Miscarrying my babies in public toilets, sometimes tying a jumper around my waist to hide the blood and carrying on as if nothing had happened.

The façade cracked when a pregnancy was discovered as ectopic at three months. A perfect baby but not in my womb: in my stomach. An emergency operation saved my life. But pregnancy loss and infertility is barely recognised as an injury, illness or bereavement. As soon as I was discharged from hospital I went back to work.

The worst part of all was what it did to my mental health. I felt like a failure as a woman. I grew distant from my friends as they had their own families. The pain of their happiness too much to bear. I thought I would never be happy.

In total we spent over £70,000 in our pursuit of parenthood and got into debt to pay for it. But in the end the closest I ever came to becoming a biological mother was a cluster of cells. The only evidence the scars across my tummy from my ectopic emergency.

Aged 43, I instinctively knew it was time to give up on my own eggs. Around the same time my relationship with my partner, Peter, started to break down. Perhaps if we had stayed together we could have explored an alternative route to parenthood – adoption, egg or sperm donation, surrogacy. But we separated. It broke me: I fell into the abyss.

I was in my forties. Childless, single and alone. I didn’t know what I wanted from life anymore.

I had a fabulous career, but it wasn’t making me happy. So I gave up my job. I moved back to my childhood home to live, and care for my elderly mum. That’s when I started to exercise my way out of heartbreak.

I’d never swum in open water before so swimming the 21 miles that separated England from France was an odd choice. I couldn’t even swim very well. But I had enjoyed going to our local pool as a child – and it was a memory from then that sparked the idea.

Back in the 1970s and 80s swimming the English Channel made headline news. When I failed to get a place in my school swimming gala I told my disappointed dad that it didn’t matter because one day I was going to swim the Channel instead.

I loved my dad so much and I wanted to make him proud. He would have made a wonderful grandfather but after suffering a series of strokes he died in 2012 on the day I received the negative result of one of my final rounds of IVF.

I trained for two years – hours and hours doing drills in the pool throughout the winter, and then in the summer in Dover Harbour. When I achieved my qualifying swim of six hours in water below 16 degrees – I was ready to make an attempt.

I began my swim out of sadness on 2 September 2015 at 1.30am. It became my own version of giving birth – 17 hours 44 minutes and 30 seconds of labour in the sea. I suffered with violent vomiting, jellyfish stings all over my body and face. But when my feet finally touched the sand in France, all the pain was eclipsed by euphoria.

The adrenalin buzz of achieving something so big had got me, so I then set out to run the London Marathon. It had been on my bucket list but I had never seriously considered it because I am a rubbish runner.

When I started training a stranger shouted out at me that I must get exhausted running so slowly. On 23 April 2017, every step of the 26.2 miles from Greenwich to the Mall was a slog and I eventually finished in 5 hours and 27 minutes. There will never be a sub four in me.

But on the positive side, I had started using my challenges to raise awareness for fertility causes – writing books and touring to schools across the country to tell my story.

I want young people today to learn more than ‘how not to get pregnant’. They need to know the warning signs of fertility problems; the impact of age on pregnancy success; the limits, costs and ethics of reproductive science.

And then, finally, I embarked on the biggest journey of my life: to the top of the world. I had heard that very few people had swum the Channel and summitted Everest and that no woman had achieved the ‘Sea, Street, Summit Challenge’ – running a marathon as well. I wanted to give it a go.

I was under no illusion about the dangers. Every year a few hundred people attempt to climb the mountain and several die.

It was going to be especially hard for a middle-aged woman who knew nothing about mountaineering. I had never put on a harness, or tied myself to a rope. I started training – climbing all the highest mountains in the UK, and around the world.

I spent hours going up hills with a pack on my back. This inspired me to take on another endurance challenge far more suited to an arty girl – listening to every single episode of my favourite radio programme – Desert Island Discs.

The show’s castaways became my companions – their wisdom and music fuelling me. They inspired me to start creating playlists for every aspect of life. For the mountains; for the mornings; for the sun, wind and rain. Music to cheer me up when I was feeling down. To push me through a final mile.

I also start creating playlists for my family – my parents, grandparents, Peter. And I created a playlist for ‘Molly’ our longed for, imagined child. For her I chose Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’ because all every mother wants is for their child to be happy. Creating these playlists brought me joy and has enabled me to cherish my family – including those I’ve lost and never had at all.

It took me six years of training and three attempts to summit Everest – whom I now call Chomolungma which is her original Tibetan Sherpa name and means ‘Mother Goddess of the World’.

The first try was a non attempt – in 2020 two weeks before I was due to fly to Nepal the mountain was closed due to Covid. I went back in 2021 but was unable to summit. I got sick but also wasn’t fit enough.

I returned for a final time in 2022. My six-day climb began with crossing the Khumbu Icefall. A tumbling cascade of giant blocks of ice, which at any moment can crash down and obliterate you. You have to cross cavernous crevasses with hundreds of metres of blackness below you on lightweight wobbly metal ladders wearing crampons. It’s like treading a tightrope in stilettos. I projectile vomited for 11 hours until we reached Camp 1.

The sickness weakened me and when we reached Camp 2, I had to rest and recover for two days. And from there we still had to reach Camp 3 up the legendary Lhotse Face, a near verticle ice wall, and to Camp 4 on the South Col from where you commence the final ascent – which for me was another 13 long hours upwards through the night.

At 7.30am on the 14 May 2022, I finally made it. But reaching the top of a mountain is only half of the journey. My descent was to become the biggest test of all. Several hours later, at 8,000 metres in the Death Zone – so called because it is too high for helicopter rescue and there isn’t enough air to survive for more than a few hours – I was involved in a freak accident.

Somebody’s oxygen cylinder came hurtling down the mountain, knocking me over and breaking my left leg. Most climbers need at least two bottles of oxygen to reach the summit. The extra bottles are carried on the back of your bag or, sometimes, shamefully thrown away when finished.

I’ll never know whether the bottle was dislodged or discarded. But the result was the darkest two days of my life in which I looked death in the face.

Everyone who climbs Everest is attached in single file to the same safety rope (without it the blow would have knocked me off the mountain). There was someone from my team in front of me and someone behind, and for a while they did what they could to help.

They took off my pack and carried it for me. But the situation was highly stressful for all of us as the injury had made me a life-threatening liability and everyone’s oxygen was running out. I could hardly move and at one point told them to leave me there to die and save themselves.

I crawled to Camp 4 where I passed out and when I woke up I discovered I had lost my sight due to snow and altitude blindness. This added an extra layer of terror.

Thankfully it returned after a couple of hours but even then the ordeal was far from over. I still had get down to Camp 2 where I could be rescued by helicopter. A descent that might usually take a few hours took a whole day – every slow painful step a game of Russian Roulette, my only support in that time Ibuprofen.

When I finally got to the relative safety of Camp 2, I collapsed and all I remember after that is lying in a tent vomiting.

The next day the weather was terrible and it was touch and go whether a helicopter would be able to land but suddenly I heard its thrum. I was carried to it in a frantic blur of sherpa, ice and pain and flown to hospital in Kathmandu.

My accident is not something I’d ever wish on anyone. But nor would I change it. Facing death has made me want to live. And one of the greatest gifts of my adventure from sea to summit is the renewed and profound relationship it has given me with Nature.

For a long time, I felt like she (Nature) didn’t love me because she wouldn’t give me a baby. Now I believe she does and saved my life – because all my injuries were man-made and if the weather hadn’t remained clement I would have surely died.

My adventures have turned the negative experiences of my life into positive. They have given me something else to focus on and the hardness of them has given me more strength to face everyday ups and downs.

I have become an activist for the power of adventure to improve your mental and physical health (including micro adventures closer to home and less dangerous).

The key is doing something new that requires effort. It makes you feel energised and ‘alive’. So I may never be a mother. I think I will always be carrying the grief of my personal life in my rucksack.

But in the words of Louis Armstrong, in one of the most selected Desert Island Discs songs of all time, I truly believe that it is (mostly) a ‘Wonderful World’.

• Save Me from the Waves: An Adventure from Sea to Summit by Jessica Hepburn (£17.99, Aurum) is published this Thursday 7 March

Prince Harry’s brief meeting with King Charles has renewed hopes of a royal truce – but with the Duke’s relationship with William still ‘incredibly broken’, an old confidant is being touted as the one man who could build a bridge between the brothers.

Harry met his father for the first time in 17 months yesterday – for just 45 minutes – following the King’s cancer diagnosis. Their brief meeting took place at Clarence House, with Charles emerging soon after looking remarkably fresh and cheerful. 

But hopes of a broader familial reconciliation were quickly scotched, with a source close to the Prince of Wales making it abundantly clear that he had ‘no plans’ to see his younger brother.

William, 41, is now completely estranged from his 39-year-old sibling following several years of vicious attacks against the monarchy, including personal criticism of himself and his wife, Kate, in his searing biography, Spare. 

Yet a source has pointed out a mutual friend who might be able to act as a bridge between the brothers – the former Welsh Guards officer turned royal equerry Mark Dyer. 

The flame-haired man of action – known to friends as ‘Marko’ – served the former Prince Charles until the mid-1990s, and acted as a mentor to the princes after the death of their mother, Diana, in 1997. 

Dubbed Harry’s ‘second dad’, he is now thought to be a conduit through which the prince can keep in touch with his family and friends in the UK. 

The Cheltenham College-educated pub owner appeared in Spare as the finger-wagging royal bodyguard who confronted Harry about his use of illegal drugs, and more recently survived stomach cancer. 

His relationship with both royal brothers – and his no-nonsense nature – could make him a useful mediator in any future discussions between them, according to insiders. 

‘Mark can always be relied on to talk sense into Harry and will be a stoic under-the-radar support for Harry in what has the propensity to be a stress-inducing time for him,’ the source told The Times. 

‘He also has the benefit of knowing what it’s like to live through a cancer diagnosis.’ 

In his previous role as one of Charles’ most trusted advisers, Mr Dyer would visit William at boarding school, help foster Harry’s romantic relationships and protect both young princes from prying photographers.

Since then, he created – and then sold – a chain of pubs. And he has fought a battle with stomach cancer, returning home to his family last year after six weeks in hospital.

His son, Jasper, is Prince Harry’s godson, who served as a page boy at Harry and Meghan’s wedding in 2018.

Dyer was steadying influence and a big brother figure to the princes in the mid-Nineties when he spent 18 months working as an equerry to Charles.

The Prince of Wales appointed him to keep an eye on his sons, a male counterpart to royal nanny Tiggy Legge-Bourke.

During the first half-term after Diana’s death, Prince Charles was committed to a five-day visit to Africa.

Dyer took Harry along and organised a safari in Botswana for him while the Prince carried out engagements.

But Dyer’s role was not always to provide a softer support for the teenaged prince.  Royal biographer Penny Junor once described Mark as one of the ‘few people who talks some sense into him’. 

In Spare, Harry recounted losing his virginity to an unnamed older woman in a field behind a ‘very busy pub’ at the age of 17.

He was still a student at Eton College in 2001 when Dyer paid him a visit, with Harry suspecting he had heard about the one-night stand – which he described as a ‘humiliating’ experience.

But over lunch in a cafeteria in the city centre, Dyer – who had a ‘sombre look’ on his face – told the Prince that he had been sent to ‘find out the truth’ about his drug-taking.

King Charles’s press office had been informed that a newspaper had evidence of Harry taking drugs.

When Harry did admit to smoking cannabis as a teenager, it was Dyer who escorted him to spend a day at a residential centre for drug users in Peckham, South London, at the insistence of his father.

When his school years ended, Harry’s closeness to Dyer grew as the pair travelled together to Australia, Argentina and Lesotho during Harry’s gap year. 

The two months Harry spent in Lesotho, at the invitation of Dyer’s friend, Prince Seeiso, made a lasting impression on the royal when he worked with orphaned children with Aids and met other traumatised youngsters.

When he returned to the UK, Harry told Prince Charles he wanted to start a charity and Dyer was the driving force behind its foundation, alongside Harry and Prince Seeiso, according to Penny Junor. 

Sentebale, of which Dyer is a trustee, supports orphans and vulnerable children in Lesotho, many of whom are affected by HIV and AIDS.

Harry remains good friends with Dyer, and once recalled of him: ‘Of all Pa’s people there was consensus that Marko was the best. The roughest, the toughest, the most dashing.’

The former Army officer was also listed in the acknowledgements section of the book, where Harry wrote: ‘Love and thanks to friends and colleagues who helped jog my memory or else restored important details lost in the haze of youth.’  

Dyer was reportedly fond of the Prince’s former girlfriend Chelsy Davy and sneaked her out to the ranch where Harry was staying in Argentina during his gap year before starting his Army training at Sandhurst.

He continued his mentoring role even after his time as an official employee of the Prince came to an end.

‘Mark Dyer had been invaluable; he had done a superb job in supporting and guiding both Princes through their adolescence and showing them something of the world – also introducing them to Africa,’ Penny Junor wrote in her biography Prince Harry: Brother, Soldier, Son.

‘The press thought he was a bad influence but he did a bloody good job for them. He had huge integrity, and he was around when they needed advice that didn’t come from their father.’ 

When Harry began wooing Cressida Bonas in 2013, Dyer did his bit to ensure the royal romance ran smoothly. 

While Harry was in Afghanistan, it was reported that he was among the close circle of friends he entrusted with keeping the romance alive.

Meanwhile, Dyer enjoyed a brief romance with ex-royal nanny Tiggy Legge-Bourke before wedding Texan heiress Amanda Kline in 2010. 

Harry was an usher at the ceremony at St Edmund’s Church at Crickhowell, in Powys, Wales. Harry later returned the compliment, asking Dyer to be an usher at his own wedding in 2018.

The Sussexes also asked Dyer to be Archie’s godfather. And Harry, in turn, is godfather to Jasper Dyer, who served as a page boy at his wedding.

In 2009, Dyer founded the management company MDM Bars and Pubs and ran pubs including the Rolling Stones’ favourite The Cross Keys and The Sand’s End, in Fulham, where Harry is said to have conducted his secret courtship with Meghan.

He sold the pubs in 2017 for more than £10million and said he was going to ‘relax’ for a while. Later, he bought the Brook House Pub in Fulham with business partner Eamonn Manson.

In 2022, Dyer was successfully treated after a gruelling battle against stomach cancer and was sent home after six weeks in hospital and 14 hours of surgery.

He was spotted at the wedding of his niece, classical soprano Alicia Lowes when she married long-distance rower Alex Simpson in Monmouthshire.

Speaking of the joy of having her uncle at the ceremony, Alicia told Richard Eden: ‘Last year was hell for Mark, but he’s turned the corner and is cancer-free.’

Dyer is described as one of the few people Harry still trusts in Britain, although whether this would put him in a position to act as a mediator remains to be seen.   

A source previously told the Mail that William respects his father’s decision to ‘keep the door ajar’ for Harry, but that is ‘not an option for him personally for the time being.’  

By Amanda Platell for The Daily Mail

Published: 07:10 EST, February 6, 2024 | Updated: 12:57 EST, February 6, 2024

Prince Harry has landed in Britain alone to be at King Charles’ side after his father told him about his shock cancer diagnosis, raising hopes of a royal truce.

The Duke of Sussex is believed to have touched down on a British Airways flight to London Heathrow – but Meghan, Archie and Lilibet have stayed at home in California.

Harry boarded the 11-hour flight hours after Charles revealed he was ill.

But the Duchess of Sussex is believed to be at their Montecito mansion with their two children, Prince Archie , four, and Princess Lilibet, two, despite the threat of floods due to extreme weather in California this week.

Harry’s transatlantic dash has raised hopes that his return to Britain will be used to heal wounds with King Charles and a chance to reach out to his brother Prince William.

His father is believed to be resting at Clarence House today ahead of treatment, with Princess Beatrice and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi seen leaving after a visit this morning. It is not known if Harry will stay in central London to be close to the King or stay at Windsor, most likely at the empty Frogmore Cottage .

Experts have said that they hope that Harry’s trip to Britain is the ‘sign of a truce’ and that ‘good news’ of a heal in the rift in the Royal Family could come from the ‘bad news’ about the King’s health.

Harry left LAX for London last night to be with his father. Charles had called him personally to tell him the devastating news and the Duke of Sussex has immediately jumped on a plane so he could be in the UK later today.

A luxury Range Rover believed to be carrying the British royal was seen arriving at LAX’s VIP terminal last night and he boarded the earliest flight so he could be in London by lunchtime on Tuesday.

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said: ‘I’m sure Harry will put aside the past right now for this serious issue. The Royal family – including the Sussexes – it’s so important that everyone is pulling in the right direction’.

Kristina Kyriacou, the King’s former press secretary, said today: ‘Charles adores Harry. He didn’t want any of this estrangement. If out of bad news, some good news comes and Harry and the King and the Queen and his brother are reunited – how wonderful.’

In Spare, Harry had revealed that Charles had urged his warring sons: ‘Please boys, don’t make my final years a misery.’ 

And his trip could be motivated by that plea.

He flew into London’s Heathrow Airport on a scheduled British Airways flight from Los Angeles. 

The Prince -who travelled on the overnight 11 hour flight without his wife Meghan – was met off the plane.

A black Range Rover parked at the VIP. Windsor Suite left to drive to another part of the airport to collect Harry.

The Range Rover escorted by two police cars,

Harry’s car had arrived at the VIP suite adjacent to Terminal Five two hours ahead of his arrival at 12.35pm on BA280.

Despite his in going row with the Home Office over police protection during visits to the UK with his family a police car followed him out.

Harry is expected to travel to Clarence House to meet with King

The King spent last night at home in London after beginning out-patient cancer treatment – as family and friends revealed that the monarch remains ‘hugely positive’ following his bombshell diagnosis. But he may miss public duties for a number of months, it has been claimed.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said today that he was ‘shocked and sad’ to hear about the King’s cancer diagnosis but revealed: ‘Thankfully this has been caught early’. 

Harry landed in the UK at lunchtime but it is not known if he will see his brother Prince William or the Princess of Wales, who is recovering from serious abdominal surgery at their home in the grounds of Winsor Castle.  But experts have said they hope that the Duke of Sussex’s last-minute trip could finally bring Harry, Charles and William closer together. 

Last time the Prince flew to the UK was in September, for the Well Child Awards, where he stayed in a hotel. Meghan missed the UK altogether, meeting him in Germany for the Invictus Games.

It is understood the Duke asked if he could stay at Windsor Castle to allow him to visit his grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth II’s place of rest, but permission was denied. 

Harry usually travels with his own private security team, after being stripped of his right to automatic police protection when he left the Royal family in 2020. 

The King contacted both the Duke of Sussex and the Prince of Wales personally to tell them of his cancer diagnosis before it was announced by Buckingham Palace.

A source close to Harry said that he had immediately decided to come to the UK to be by his father’s side. Experts have claimed that Harry’s dash to Britain ‘indicates the seriousness’ of the King’s condition.

Announcing that Prince Harry will come and see his father, the Office of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex said: ‘The duke did speak with his father about his diagnosis. He will be traveling to UK to see His Majesty in the coming days.’ 

Richard Fitzwilliams told The Sun: ‘I’m sure Harry will put aside the past right now for this serious issue. The Royal family – including the Sussexes – it’s so important that everyone is pulling in the right direction’. 

Former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond said she hoped that King Charles III’s cancer diagnosis ‘will bring a reconciliation’ with Prince Harry. 

Harry estranged brother William is also in close contact with his father but neither brother has made a public statement yet. The heir to the throne, who returns to public duties this week after helping to settle his wife, the Princess of Wales, at home as she recovers from abdominal surgery.

He may also undertake some duties on behalf of his father, in addition to his own diary of engagements, while the King undergoes treatment.

As the King’s cancer shocked Britain, the Commonwealth and the world, it also emerged:  

Buckingham Palace announced on Monday that doctors discovered the cancer during a medical procedure for an enlarged prostate. Sources have suggested that the cancer is in a different part of the King’s body but was discovered during the surgery last week. 

Prince Harry was last in the UK over the summer, when he attended an event for a children’s charity. However, he did not meet with the Royal family during that visit before heading to Germany for his Invictus Games where he met up with Meghan. 

The Duke of Sussex attended his father’s coronation last May, but left London just hours after the ceremony to return to Montecito.

Harry is believed to be in contact with his father but sources have claimed that there has been no rapprochement with William, who is said to have been left upset by the Sussexes’ attacks on the Royal Family since Megxit.

Harry’s visit will raise hopes that there could be some thawing in the relations, which have been rocky since he and Meghan emigrated in 2020.

King Charles’ cancer diagnosis has shocked the world.

The 75-year-old monarch has returned to London from Sandringham to begin treatment immediately.

It is not connected with his recent surgery and is not prostate cancer, but medics spotted it when he underwent his medical procedure for an enlarged prostate.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement: ‘During The King’s recent hospital procedure for benign prostate enlargement, a separate issue of concern was noted. Subsequent diagnostic tests have identified a form of cancer.

‘His Majesty has today commenced a schedule of regular treatments, during which time he has been advised by doctors to postpone public-facing duties. Throughout this period, His Majesty will continue to undertake State business and official paperwork as usual.

‘The King is grateful to his medical team for their swift intervention, which was made possible thanks to his recent hospital procedure. He remains wholly positive about his treatment and looks forward to returning to full public duty as soon as possible.

‘His Majesty has chosen to share his diagnosis to prevent speculation and in the hope it may assist public understanding for all those around the world who are affected by cancer.’

The palace said the King ‘looks forward to returning to full public duty as soon as possible’, but it is not yet known whether it will affect his attendance at events such as those marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day in June.

It is understood he will continue to receive red boxes and process state documents during treatment and there are no plans to appoint Counsellors of State.

A palace spokesman said: ‘Regrettably, a number of the King’s forthcoming public engagements will have to be rearranged or postponed.

‘His Majesty would like to apologise to all those who may be disappointed or inconvenienced as a consequence.’

It is understood details of the King’s diary are still being worked on and it is not yet known when a full programme of engagements will begin.

Reacting to the news, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak tweeted: ‘Wishing His Majesty a full and speedy recovery. 

‘I have no doubt he’ll be back to full strength in no time and I know the whole country will be wishing him well.’

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer tweeted: ‘On behalf of the Labour Party, I wish His Majesty all the very best for his recovery.

‘We look forward to seeing him back to swift full health.’

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle told MPs: ‘I know the whole House will wish to join me in expressing our sympathies with His Majesty the King following the news announcement this evening. 

‘Our thoughts are, of course, with His Majesty and his family, and we’d all wish to send him our very best wishes for the successful treatment and a speedy recovery.’

The diagnosis is also likely to be professionally devastating for Charles, who was the longest-serving heir to the throne in British history before he became King on the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, on September 8 2022.

Since then he has hit the ground running with three state visits overseas, hosting two incoming state visits to the UK and undertaking hundreds of public engagements each year, taking on a punishing official workload well into his 70s.

Aides have said he has relished the challenge and is hugely enjoying his royal role.

The King’s diagnosis will pose serious questions for the working of the monarchy, with fewer working members of the royal family and the Princess of Wales out of action due to what has only been described as ‘abdominal surgery’ until after Easter.

The Prince of Wales, who is heir to the throne, had cleared his diary to be by his wife’s side and keep life as normal as possible for their three children.

Kensington Palace announced earlier today, however, that he would resume public duties this week by conducting an investiture on Wednesday at Windsor Castle, followed by a gala fundraising event for the London Air Ambulance in the evening.

While Queen Elizabeth suffered episodic periods of ill-health over the years and underwent surgery on a number of occasions, including on her knee and cataracts, there was no major health crisis of this magnitude until the very last months of her historic 70-year reign.

That, however, would have a serious knock-on effect on the family life of the Prince and Princess of Wales.

They moved to Windsor 18-months ago in order to allow their children to enjoy a more carefree childhood, outside of the royal bubble, until absolutely necessary.

Prince George, ten, who is second in line to the throne, Princess Charlotte, eight, and five-year-old Prince Louis all attend a local school. Lambrook, and have settled in well at their new home, Adelaide Cottage.

William and Kate’s team are still based at Kensington Palace in London, their official residence, and travel up to Windsor for meetings.

Questions will inevitably be asked how practicable it will be for them to do so now.

The King has largely enjoyed very good health throughout his life, apart from suffering from a cripplingly bad back.

The first sign that anything was amiss with his health came on January 17 when Buckingham Palace made a surprise announcement that the King had ‘sought treatment’ for an enlarged prostate.

The palace added that His Majesty’s condition was ‘benign’ and that he would attend hospital the following week for a corrective procedure.

They said he was personally keen to share details of his diagnosis to encourage other men who may be experiencing symptoms to get themselves check.

The NHS subsequently reported an encouraging spike in people seeking more information on their website.

His Majesty, who was in Scotland at the time, travelled back down to Sandringham afterwards and then on to London the night before his surgery.

He was admitted to The London Clinic in Marylebone, central London, on January 26 with his wife, Queen Camilla, by his side.

Buckingham Palace said he wanted to thank everyone for their good wishes and was delighted to learn that his diagnosis was having a positive impact on public health awareness.

He was finally released on Monday last week after three nights in hospital and said to be ‘doing well’.

He initially resided at Clarence House, his London residence, in order to be close to his doctors, before returning to Sandringham with his wife.

Queen Camilla has continued to undertake public engagements, telling members of the l public that her husband was ‘doing fine’ and looking forwards to getting back to work.

Last Tuesday she told well-wishers he was ‘getting on’ and ‘doing his best’, adding: ‘Thank goodness!’

One in every three men over the age of 50 will have symptoms of an enlarged prostate, which include needing to visit the toilet more frequently, with more urgency, and difficulty emptying the bladder.

An enlarged prostate, known as benign prostatic hyperplasia, does not usually pose a serious threat to health, and it is not cancer.

But patients may need to have several tests for the condition to rule out the possibility they have another illness with similar symptoms, such as prostate cancer.

Surgery is usually only recommended for moderate to severe symptoms that have not responded to medicine.

Mark Drakeford , the First Minister of Wales, wished the King a ‘full and swift recovery’ following his cancer diagnosis.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said: ‘I’m saddened to hear the news that HM King Charles III is facing further health challenges.

‘My thoughts and those of people across Wales will be with him and his family this evening.

‘I send my very best wishes as he starts treatment for a full and swift recovery.

‘Gwellhad buan.’

Northern Ireland’s new First Minister Michelle O’Neill, who as leader of Sinn Fein is a republican, wished the King a full and speedy recovery. 

‘I am very sorry to hear of King Charles’ illness and I want to wish him well for his treatment, and a full and speedy recovery,’ she posted on X.

Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis said after the shocking news today: ‘I am saddened to have heard about His Majesty The King’s diagnosis. 

‘I know that the Jewish communities of Great Britain and the Commonwealth will join me in wishing him a Refuah Sheleima – a complete and swift recovery.’

Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins wrote on X: ‘My thoughts are with King Charles and the whole Royal Family.

‘His decision to share his diagnosis to assist public understanding for all those affected by cancer is commendable.

‘Wishing His Majesty the very best and look forward to seeing him resume his public duties.’

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting, who received treatment for kidney cancer in 2021, said: ‘One in two of us will develop cancer during our lives, but millions more are affected when someone they love is diagnosed with cancer.

‘Sending best wishes to His Majesty for his treatment and to his family as they support him throughout.’

Sophie Turner’s blossoming new romance with Peregrine Pearson is more than just an affair; insiders claim she’s ‘finding herself’ through the British aristocrat amid her shocking split from Joe Jonas.

A source close to the 27-year-old actress told DailyMail.com exclusively that she and Peregrine, 29, are well and truly in the “honeymoon period” and that he has helped her heal from the breakdown of her four-year marriage.

The latest insight comes after Sophie and Peregrine spent the weekend at Blenheim Palace in Oxford with a group of friends, just days after they were pictured sharing another passionate public kiss.

“Sophie has been hurt by her breakup with Joe, and hanging out with Perry has really put her at ease,” the insider said.

‘At first she thought it was going to be nothing more than an affair and she had fun because it distracted her from her struggle with Joe and the divorce.

‘That’s when she realized she had to stop feeling bad for herself and accept that Perry continued to pursue her. Then she started thinking about him more and more and enjoying all the pleasure he gave her.’

They added: ‘Whatever you want to call it, the honeymoon phase or puppy love, that’s what it is now.

“Being with someone, especially during the holidays, and being happy is the best medicine Sophie can have right now.

‘Through Perry she finds herself again, she laughs again.’

Sophie and Peregrine looked every bit a couple in love as they enjoyed a weekend away in the countryside with friends.

The couple were invited by the Marquess and Marchioness of Blandford to spend a few days at Blenheim Palace in Oxford, where they enjoyed a hunting session in their extensive grounds.

In images posted to Instagram by fellow guest Jemima Herbet, Sophie and her British aristocratic boyfriend were seen smiling at the camera.

While other guests wore traditional waxed jackets and tartan blazers, the Game of Thrones actress looked chic in a cropped black puffer jacket, blue jeans and green rubber boots.

The A-List actress wore her blonde hair in a ponytail and wore minimal makeup for the excursion.

In another photo, Sophie – who announced her split from Joe, 34, in September – sat with her friends while Peregrine posed with his pals behind her.

The actress’s new love interest is the eldest son and heir of Michael Pearson, the 4th Viscount Cowdray – a former film producer who owns a significant part of the Pearson media empire.

Although Sophie is said to be worth as much as ten million dollars, this pales in comparison to Peregrine’s family fortune, which is believed to be more than £224 million ($273 million).

Sophie and Peregrine were first spotted kissing in the French capital during the World Cup in October, just two months after she confirmed her split from Joe.

Last Thursday they were pictured kissing in public for the second time during a nighttime stroll in London.

Joe, who has daughters Willa, three, and Delphine, one, with Sophie, was initially unhappy when photos emerged of his ex-wife and Peregrine. Sources close to the star claimed he felt it was ‘too soon’ after filing for divorce. .

But the singer has seemingly made a U-turn and now fully supports her decisions, with a separate source telling DailyMail.com last week: ‘Joe supports whatever choices she makes and if she’s happy, he’s happy. He loves his girls and his time with them.

“They have come to a point of mutual understanding and they will always have love for each other.”

The actress, who at the time was living in Taylor Swift’s New York apartment with their two daughters Willa, three, and Delphine, one, claimed to have discovered through the media that Joe was filing for divorce – and accused him of refusing hand over their children’s passports.

The pair reached a temporary detention agreement in October, which they announced in a joint statement.

“After a productive and successful mediation, we have agreed that the children will spend equal time in loving homes in both the US and Britain,” they said.

“We look forward to being great co-parents.”

Peregrine previously dated King Charles’ goddaughter, Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece, a 27-year-old model.

However, in September it emerged that they had gone their separate ways after ‘growing apart’.