The Duke of Cambridge visited the Royal Marsden Hospital today, almost 40 years after his late mother, Princess Diana, made the same visit for her first solo engagement in 1982.
Prince William was given the title of President of The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in 2007, a title once held by his mother, and on Thursday visited the hospital in Chelsea to learn about the psychological support being offered to staff, patients and their families.
In a rare scene, the royal father-of-three was seen warmly greeting and hugging members of staff at the hospital, thanking them for their incredible dedication and work.
The hospital staff were beaming after receiving a hug from none other than the Duke of Cambridge himself. (Image: Getty)
In a video shared to the Kensington Palace Instagram account, William chats to a staff member named Joyce, who says she works downstairs.
“Then what are you doing in this ward Joyce?,” teases William, “you snuck up here!”
“To come and get a glimpse of you,” she beamed, while William gives her a warm hug.
“Thank you Joyce and Evelyn @RoyalMarsden for sneaking upstairs for a hug with The Duke of Cambridge,” wrote Kensington Palace in the post’s caption.
“I had a hug from William – he’s my prince,” said Evelyn, one of the lucky members of staff told the media, reports E! News.
“This is my best working day.”
Watch the adorable exchange, above.
William visited the hospital to find out how it offers psychological support to patients, staff and family. (Image: Getty)
Prince William has visited the hospital multiple times since his appointment as President, his most recent visit was earlier this year, when the Prince donned scrubs to watch two top surgeons use robotic surgical technology called a da Vinci XI machine.
The Royal Marsden is the world’s first hospital dedicated to cancer diagnosis, treatment, research and education. Opening its doors in 1851, it is now the largest and most comprehensive cancer centre in Europe.
During his visit William also met with Julie, who was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, following treatment and remission, the cancer returned in 2018 and she received robotic surgery at The Royal Marsden.
She told the Duke about the psychological support she was given by the hospital to help deal with her relapse and treatment as well as speech and language therapy to get her speech and eating back to a ‘new’ normal.
Learning about the psychological support given to the entire community at the hospital ties in with William’s mental health advocacy. Alongside his wife, Duchess Catherine, and brother, Prince Harry, the trio founded the Heads Together campaign, with the aim to tackle the stigma surrounding mental health.
Earlier this month the Prince took part in a TV documentary, Royal Team Talk: Tackling Mental Health, where he opened up about how while he had suffered immense pain caused by his late mother’s death, it has allowed him to identify with others who are grieving.
The documentary, which was aimed at men in particular, includes footage of William discussing mental health issues with top British football players and England football manager Gareth Southgate.
The BBC‘s Dan Walker (far right) presented Royal Team Talk: Tackling Mental Health alongside William. (Image: BBC)
Earlier this week Prince William surprised and moved well-wishers by unexpectedly joining them in a vigil for his late mother to mark what would have been her 58th birthday.
In an emotional encounter with six royal fans, the Prince emerged unexpectedly from Kensington Palace, reportedly telling them he was incredibly touched by what they were doing and revealed the much-talked about statue of Princess Diana would be revealed very soon.
“We just want to make sure it is right,” he reportedly told the well-wishes.
“It’s important to get it right.”
