A brand new biography of the Prince and Princess of Wales by Mirror royal editor Russell Myers reveals how William told friends “everything changed” with Kate’s cancer diagnosis
Prince William was left in “a state of disbelief” before he and the Princess of Wales gathered their three children together to tell them that “mummy was ill, but that she was going to be okay” after she was diagnosed with cancer.
The future king and queen composed themselves to deliver the shocking news to Prince George, then 10, Princess Charlotte, nine and Prince Louis, who was just five at the time.
William told friends it was “like being hit by a bus”, “sudden, brutal, and completely disorienting”, adding: “One moment life was normal, and the next, everything changed.”
The deeply personal experience felt by the Prince of Wales after his wife Kate and his father, King Charles, were diagnosed with the disease within days of each other in early 2024, is told for the first time in a new revelatory biography by The Mirror’s royal editor Russell Myers.
William and Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story delivers never-before-told insight into the Prince and Princess of Wales’s life together, from their first meeting as students at St Andrews university in Scotland to the current day.
In the second day of our four part exclusive serialisation of the bombshell book, the heir to the throne’s deepest thoughts on his wife’s condition and his worry over the future of the monarchy are revealed for the first time.
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William told close friends how he felt helpless, describing his heartache as if “the rug had been pulled” beneath him as he struggled to come to terms with Kate’s diagnosis.
In the first joint biography of the Prince and Princess of Wales in more than a decade, Myers reveals how William comforted their children by cooking dinner at home and organising playdates with their friends, as the princess bravely steadied herself to address the nation with a personally written speech with the help of her sister Pippa.
Packed with new insights, Myers’s in-depth, definitive account presents a ground-breaking perspective including how the princess immersed herself in “natural healing” by studying an ancient Japanese ritual alongside her traditional treatment in hospital.
A close friend of William’s described the “deeply emotional” experience of witnessing the prince experience “heartbreak, fear and helplessness all at once”.
But despite the turmoil, involving the princess withdrawing from public life as she underwent six months of chemotherapy, those closest to the prince and princess believe they have emerged stronger than ever.
Speaking of William’s reaction, the friend told Myers: “It was like being hit by a bus, sudden, brutal, and completely disorienting. One moment life was normal, and the next, everything changed. He worships her, truly. She’s his world, and when the diagnosis came, it was as if the ground beneath him vanished.
“He talked about the rug being pulled, but it was more than that, it was heartbreak, fear and helplessness all at once. Watching him go through it was deeply emotional. You could see it in his eyes; in the way he held himself. But through it all, his devotion to her never wavered. He’s been by her side every step, and the depth of his devotion is something that stays with you.
“It’s love in its rawest, most powerful form.”
In the first part of The Mirror’s exclusive serialisation, yesterday it was revealed how Prince William demanded his disgraced uncle Andrew be immediately banished from the royal fold “before the rot set in”, following revelations of the former Duke of York’s close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Drawing on exclusive access to numerous palace insiders, William and Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story, offers never-before-told context to about the biggest stories to have followed the Prince and Princess of Wales in recent years – including how William went against the late Queen and Chales who were in favour of protecting Andrew, six years before the King finally exiled him from royal life.
The new revelatory biography, available to pre-order now, also highlights the couple’s resilience and dedication in the face of adversity, from the relentless media scrutiny and controversies of their 2022 Caribbean tour, as well as the prince and princess’ reaction to the departure from royal life by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, the forming of the ‘Cambridge way’ and the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Myers said: “The diagnoses of the Princess of Wales and the King within days of one another created the most unprecedented period in modern royal history. This book delves into the deeply personal experience of both Prince William and the princess, that has seen them face adversity and come out stronger, emboldening their vision of how they want to shape the monarchy in the future.”
William and Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story, published on 26 February by Ebury, Penguin Random House, is available to pre-order now.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.mirror.co.uk ’
