Peter Phillips has praised Princess Kate as “remarkable” and said the outpouring of goodwill from the public has “enormously encouraged” her and King Charles as they both battle cancer.
Princess Anne’s son also described how Kate and her husband William make a “fantastic” team dedicated to their three children, George, Charlotte and Louis.
Peter, 46, praised the Prince and Princess of Wales for their excellent balance between public royal duties and private family life, in a newly released interview recorded just before Kate revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer.
The princess made the news public in a video posted on Friday night, after spending a fortnight at the private London clinic for abdominal surgery in January.
She and William said they were “extremely moved” by the outpouring of support from around the world since their shock announcement.
Peter Phillips, William’s cousin, has called the recovering Princess of Wales “remarkable”
Princess Kate revealed in a video posted last Friday that she has been diagnosed with cancer.
Peter, left, is pictured with William, Kate and Prince Harry at a lunch to mark the late Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday at The Mall in central London on June 12, 2016.
Prince Harry and Meghan also reached out after finding out the princess was receiving cancer treatment.
Kate is now on what has been described as a “road to recovery” after beginning chemotherapy treatment at the end of February.
A friend said she wrote her cancer battle message “alone, very quickly.”
King Charles and Queen Camilla visited his London Clinic ward on January 26 before Charles, 75, himself underwent surgery for benign prostate cancer and was later diagnosed with cancer, for which he has been receiving treatment since then.
Phillips, the only son of Princess Anne and her first husband Captain Mark Phillips, has been visiting Australia as a patron of the ISPS Handa charity.
When asked about Kate, he told Sky News Australia: “For her and the King, the outpouring of support for both of them and the good wishes for both of their speedy recoveries has been hugely encouraging.”
“She is extraordinary in her own right; without a doubt, she and William make a fantastic team.”
“The kids are fantastic and they have the balance between public life and trying to be parents of three young children, which is always difficult. I think they’ve done pretty well.”
‘As history has taught us and everyone knows, you want to be there for your children when they are a certain age.
‘You want to be able to drop them off at school, pick them up from school and go see games and be part of their school life.
“I think that balance between family life and also public life, I think they have achieved it quite well.”
The Prince and Princess of Wales, pictured at the Horse Guards Parade in London on November 23 last year, have been described by their cousin Peter Phillips as a “fantastic team”.
William and Kate, seen here in the Christmas card they sent in 2020, have three children, from left: Prince George, 10, Prince Louis, five, and Princess Charlotte, eight.
Kate was seen attending church in Sandringham, Norfolk, with her family last Christmas Day.
“We are very lucky that, although we probably don’t see each other as much as we would like, when we are together it is a very important moment, not only for us as cousins but for all of our children.” together.’
Phillips also spoke about how important it had been for the royal family’s children to be with the late Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh.
He added: “When my grandparents were alive, they were able to spend time with their great-grandchildren; those moments are important.”
‘When I look at it from my grandparents’ perspective, the older they got, the more time you spent going to see them and allowing their great-grandchildren to spend time with them.
‘It’s a pretty unique situation for any child to be able to spend time with their great-grandparents.
“The time we spend together as a family is very important and that support that everyone needs, and certainly in difficult times.”
And he said his uncle, King Charles, was in “good spirits” during his own battle with cancer, but that recovery was taking “a little longer” than expected.
He described the monarch as feeling “hugely frustrated” at not being able to go out and do everything he wanted, despite being “pragmatic” and knowing he needs to “focus on himself” while he recovers.
Phillips said: “He’s in good spirits, but ultimately he’s hugely frustrated.”
“He’s frustrated because he can’t move on and do everything he wants.”
‘But he is very pragmatic, he understands that there is a period of time when he really needs to focus on himself.
Peter Phillips, pictured with partner Lindsay Wallace at Wimbledon last July, also told how King Charles feels “frustrated” at the pace of his recovery from cancer.
King Charles and Queen Camilla have said they are “very proud” of their daughter-in-law Kate
King Charles greets Kate during an event at the Royal Albert Hall in September 2021
“But at the same time you’re always pushing your staff and everyone – your doctors and nurses – to say, ‘Can I do this or that?’
“I think the prevailing message is that he’s obviously looking forward to getting back to some form of normality and is probably frustrated that his recovery is taking a little longer than he would like.”
It has been suggested that Kate’s message took a fortnight to prepare, and that the timing was decided to help protect her children from being questioned at school.
The release of the video coincided with The last day at Lambrook School in Berkshire before the Easter holidays for Prince George, aged 10 and eight. Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, five.
The princess told viewers: “The most important thing is that it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be okay.”
She said in the video message recorded last Wednesday in Windsor and released two days later: “In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London and at the time, my condition was thought to be non-cancerous.
‘The surgery was a success. However, tests after the operation found that there was cancer.
‘Therefore, my medical team recommended that I undergo preventive chemotherapy treatment and I am now in the early stages of that treatment.
“This, of course, came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing our best to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family. As you can imagine, this has taken time.”
Simon Lewis, former press secretary to the late Queen Elizabeth II, praised Kate for being “perfect” in his “brave, powerful and dignified” statement.
In a statement issued on behalf of the King on Friday evening, Buckingham Palace said: “Her Majesty is “very proud of Catherine for her bravery in speaking out as she did.”
Peter Phillips, 46 (pictured in March at the Cheltenham festival) said the King was being “pragmatic” but was pressuring his doctors to let him go out and do more.
Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, pictured here visiting Factory Works in Birmingham on October 23, spent a fortnight at the London Clinic following abdominal surgery in January.
King Charles arrived at the London Clinic in Marylebone on January 26 to receive treatment for a benign prostate condition and stopped by Kate’s ward first.
‘Following their stay together in hospital, HM “has remained in close contact with his beloved daughter-in-law over the past few weeks.”
‘Both Their Majesties “will continue to offer their love and support to the entire family at this difficult time.”‘
Kate has rarely been seen in public since attending church at Sandringham in Norfolk on Christmas Day last year, although a member of the public filmed her and William after visiting a farm shop earlier this month.
The couple was also photographed being driven from Windsor on March 11 before the prince attended a Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey in central London and Kate attended a private appointment.