Brave King Charles opens up on ‘anxieties of illness’ during his & Kate’s cancer battles in emotional Christmas speech

THE King drew on his and Kate’s cancer battles in his Christmas broadcast but also celebrated those “who bring hope where there is despair” and “dedicate their lives to helping others”.

Speaking from a chapel in a former hospital Charles, 76, who will continue his treatment in the New Year, he hailed the “selflessness” of nurses and doctors and war veterans.

PA

King Charles delivered his Christmas Day address from this former hospital chapel to mark his ongoing cancer treatment[/caption]

theroyalfamily

Behind the scenes footage from the King’s Speech[/caption]

He also spoke of his and Kate’s cancer and celebrated health heroes who had “supported me and other members of my Family through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness”.

And signed off his address beamed to millions around the world by calling for “peace on earth”.

The King’s third annual broadcast is set to top Christmas Day telly viewing rankings, and he spoke of the Nativity Story but also all faiths saying “in times of joy and of suffering” there is a call “to bring light where there is darkness”.

The remark has echoes of the Princess of Wales‘s emotional video just three months ago when she revealed she had completed her chemotherapy when she said “out of darkness, can come light, so let that light shine bright”.

He also spoke of his “pride” in the nation’s response to the violent rioting following the summer’s killings of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed party.

And described the “enormous privilege” of attending and celebrating “special generation” D-Day 80th anniversary commemorations.

Charles, who led the Royal Family to church at Sandringham on Christmas morning, also spoke of people “suffering” both “mental or physical” illness and said “diversity of culture, ethnicity and Faith provides strength, not weakness.”

The working royals were also celebrated throughout the 10-minute broadcast showing the King and Queen at D-Day commemorations and on tour in Australia and Samoa.

Emotional moments from the year including the King getting a group hug from New Zealand rugby players, meeting cancer patients and a cuddle with Uncle James Michael ‘Widdy’ Welsh, one of Australia’s “stolen generation” of children, also featured.

Prince William playing rugby in Cape Town during his Earthshot Prize and work by the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, Princess Anne and Edward and Sophie the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh was also celebrated in the video accompanying the speech.

While the Princess of Wales, who has suffered her own cancer battle, is hailed as she appears at Trooping the Colour and her Christmas Carol concert at Westminster Abbey with Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 9, and six-year-old Prince Louis.

The broadcast’s Christmas carol ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ was performed by a London youth choir working with inner-city state schools.

Standing for his Christmas address at Fitzrovia Chapel which used to to serve the now-demolished Middlesex Hospital in central London, Charles said: “Earlier this year, as we commemorated the 80th Anniversary of D-Day, The Queen and I had the enormous privilege of meeting, once again, the remarkable veterans of that very special generation who gave of themselves so courageously, on behalf of us all.

“Listening to these once-young Service men and women touched us deeply as they spoke of their comrades, drawn from across the Commonwealth, who never returned and who now rest peacefully where they made the ultimate sacrifice.”

The King had cancer treatment the day before he joined commemorations in Portsmouth and then Normandy in June.

He added: “Their example of service and selflessness continues to inspire, across the generations. During previous commemorations we were able to console ourselves with the thought that these tragic events seldom happen in the modern era.

The King also used his broadcast, which is also screened around the Commonwealth, to promote worldwide peace.

He said: “But, on this Christmas Day, we cannot help but think of those for whom the devastating effects of conflict – in the Middle East, in Central Europe, in Africa and elsewhere – pose a daily threat to so many people’s lives and livelihoods.

“We also think of the humanitarian organisations working tirelessly to bring vital relief. After all, the Gospels speak so vividly of conflict and teach the values with which we can overcome it.

“The example that Jesus gave us is timeless and universal. It is to enter the world of those who suffer, to make a difference to their lives and so bring hope where there is despair.”

The late Queen Elizabeth II‘s annual televised broadcast always had a Christian theme and Charles has shown he will keep the tradition alive – but also drew in all faiths.

He said: “As the famous Christmas Carol, ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ reminds us, ‘Our Saviour holy’ ‘came down to Earth from Heaven’, lived among ‘the poor and mean and lowly’ and transformed the lives of those he met, through God’s ‘redeeming love’.

“That is the heart of the Nativity Story and we can hear its beat in the belief of all the great Faiths in the love and mercy of God in times of joy and of suffering, calling us to bring light where there is darkness.”

The King and Kate both needed hospital treatment last January and weeks later shocked the world when they revealed they had cancer.

The Princess of Wales, 42, said in September that her chemotherapy was over but the King’s treatment will continue into the New Year although palace sources say he was in a “positive place” and beyond the “most optimistic hopes of doctors”.

In his address, Charles drew on his family health crisis, adding: “All of us go through some form of suffering at some stage in our life, be it mental or physical.

“The degree to which we help one another – and draw support from each other, be we people of Faith or of none – is a measure of our civilisation as Nations.

“This is what continually impresses me, as my Family and I meet with, and listen to, those who dedicate their lives to helping others.”

Charles, whose first official engagement after his diagnosis was to a cancer ward, chose the chapel rather than a royal residence to film his speech because of his connection to health and community.

He said: “I am speaking to you today from the Chapel of the former Middlesex Hospital in London – now itself a vibrant Community space – and thinking especially of the many thousands of professionals and volunteers here in the United Kingdom and across the Commonwealth who, with their skills and out of the goodness of their heart, care for others – often at some cost to themselves.

And speaking from his own experiences said: “From a personal point of view, I offer special, heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses who, this year, have supported me and other members of my Family through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness, and have helped provide the strength, care and comfort we have needed.

“I am deeply grateful, too, to all those who have offered us their own kind words of sympathy and encouragement.”

The King vowed to travel to Australia and Samoa earlier this year and paused his treatment to make the gruelling nine-day trip.

He said: “On our recent visit to the South Pacific to attend the Commonwealth Summit, I was reminded constantly of the strength which institutions, as well as individuals, can draw from one another. And of how diversity of culture, ethnicity and Faith provides strength, not weakness.

“Across the Commonwealth, we are held together by a willingness to listen to each other, to learn from one another and to find just how much we have in common. Because, through listening, we learn to respect our differences, to defeat prejudice, and to open up new possibilities.”

The King visited Southport in August after the tragic deaths at a Taylor Swift-themed party and two months later both William and Kate showed their support.

Charles added: “I felt a deep sense of pride here in the United Kingdom when, in response to anger and lawlessness in several towns this Summer, communities came together, not to repeat these behaviours but to repair. To repair not just buildings, but relationships.

“And, most importantly, to repair trust; by listening and, through understanding, deciding how to act for the good of all. Again, listening is a recurrent theme of the Nativity Story. Mary, the Mother of Jesus, listened to the Angel who revealed to her a different future full of hope for all people.

“The message of the Angels to the shepherds – that there should be peace on Earth – in fact echoes through all Faiths and philosophies. It rings true to this day for people of goodwill across the world.

“And so it is with this in mind that I wish you, and all those you love, a most joyful and peaceful Christmas.”

The broadcast was filmed under intense secrecy at the chapel on December 11.

It is the third time in as many years he has delivered the address from a different location after St George’s Chapel where the late Queen is laid to rest in 2022 and Buckingham Palace in 2023.

This is the first time it has been outside a royal residence since Queen Elizabeth II spoke from London’s Southwark Cathedral in 2006.

The National Anthem was performed by the Band of the Grenadier Guards who earlier this year performed at the King’s Birthday Parade, two State Visits and the State Opening of Parliament.

The carol, ‘Once in Royal David’s City’, was sung by the Inner Voices Choir, conducted by Edward Watkins.

Its first verse was sung by soloist Bailei Marshall-Gray and the descant in the fourth verse was sung by Imogen Garrett.

Inner Voices is a London-based youth choir, working with inner-city state schools to improve access to a first-class choral education.

In recent years, the choir has sung services at Westminster Abbey and St Paul’s Cathedral; toured Belgium and Italy; and been featured in a broadcast on Radio 4.

The choir is managed by Edward Watkins and Ralph Allwood.