Prince Harry visited Elizabeth II’s grave at Windsor Castle on the third anniversary of her death. Photo / Getty Images
The Duke of Sussex has paid a private visit to the late Queen’s grave after arriving back in the UK.
Prince Harry landed in London on Monday morning and was driven straight to Windsor Castle, where he laid a wreath and flowers and paid his private respects to his late grandmother at St George’s Chapel on the third anniversary of her death.
At the same time, the Prince and Princess of Wales were just 12km away, on the other side of Windsor Great Park, carrying out a joint public engagement to commemorate the late Queen.
As they chatted to members of the Sunningdale branch of the Women’s Institute (WI) over tea and cake, Prince William said that he “can’t quite believe it has been three years already” since the death of his grandmother.
Asked about his children, he admitted that his younger son, Prince Louis, 7, was “a character” but a “really good boy” and said that while Prince George, 12, knew how to behave in public, “behind closed doors, it’s a different ballgame”.
The Princess revealed that she and the children had been “crafting in every corner of the house” over the summer holidays.
The Duke of Sussex was spotted arriving at Los Angeles International Airport in California dressed casually in a black polo shirt and sunglasses and carrying a brown holdall.
On arrival in London, he was ushered through the private Windsor Suite, before being whisked to Windsor Castle in a Range Rover.
The duke would have had to ask for special permission to visit the late Queen’s final resting place, just as he did when he found himself in the UK on the first anniversary of her death in 2023.
Then, Buckingham Palace kept him waiting but at the last minute, he was told he could make the private pilgrimage to the chapel, deep in the confines of St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
Buckingham Palace aides insisted, however, that the visit had to be private.
He almost pulled it off but a savvy onlooker who happened to be in the grounds of Windsor Castle spotted the red-headed Prince and swiftly pulled out their phone and the image was posted on social media.
The late Queen was buried at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, a tiny annexe of the main chapel, alongside her husband, her parents, and her sister.
The duke, who was last in the UK in April, will spend several days reinforcing his connection with his various UK-based charities.
He was said to be thoroughly looking forward to the trip, with sources revealing that he was in a “really good head space” and feeling “positive”.
The duke arrived at the Royal Lancaster Hotel just after 4pm, smiling as he clambered out of his Range Rover to be greeted by WellChild chief executive Matt James.
Dressed in a blue suit and a grey tie, he glanced briefly at the bank of cameras before making his way inside to pose alongside charity representatives.
The duke spent the evening at the WellChild Awards in central London, honouring inspirational sick children and their families. He has been patron of WellChild since 2007 and makes a point of attending the annual ceremony.
Harry made some light-hearted jokes about troublesome sibling relationships as he met the WellChild award winners.
Chatting to Declan Bitmead, 17, about family life, he was told the teenager had a younger brother.
“Does he drive you mad?” asked the duke. Declan replied “No, we get on fine” before Harry quipped with a smile “you know what – siblings”.
Told the teenager and his brother went to the same school, he added: “You’re at the same school, that sometimes makes it more challenging”.
In a speech, the duke spoke with deep affection about his bond with the charity. “I still remember my very first WellChild Awards, 18 years ago,” he said. “I walked into the room, and within about three minutes I realised two things: the love and energy in the room was palpable, so too was the unpredictability!
“And second, that I was completely hooked on it all. This night has been a highlight of my year ever since and it’s all because of you guys – these children, this cause, and our WellChild community.”
On Tuesday, he will visit the Community Radio Station in Nottingham and on Wednesday, he will visit the Centre for Blast Injury Studies, 12 years after he opened its new laboratories in 2013. He will be updated on its recent work concerning paediatric blast and crush injuries, research for child amputees and learning from conflict and disaster zones.
In Sunningdale, William told local members of the WI that the late Queen “loved” the organisation and “used to talk a lot about it”.
She was a member for 80 years, joining in 1943, and served as president of the Sandringham branch from 2003 until her death in 2022, and would regularly attend the New Year meeting in January.
William revealed that his family had enjoyed a lovely summer but said it was “nice to get back” to work.
Asked if his children were back at school, he replied: “Thankfully, yes.”
On arrival, the princess chose a slice of chocolate chip cookie cake while William helped himself to a chocolate brownie and a piece of orange and Campari cake.
The princess said: “We should have brought some for you!” before declaring hers “delicious”.
The prince had high praise for the brownie, saying: “I know my brownies.”
He declared it to be a good recipe because it didn’t contain nuts.
“Never put nuts in a brownie,” he added emphatically, which prompted his wife to joke: “I had to learn the hard way.”
She said her husband was “very fussy” about his brownies.
Chatting about his grandmother’s passion for horses and horse breeding, the prince said: “I think she would have loved a few more wins. She was very upset that she couldn’t win a few more times.
“She used to have an iPad so that she could watch all the foals being born, so wherever she was in the country she could see. She was very dedicated.”
Margot Gosney, 65, a retired professor of medicine at the Royal Berkshire hospital, told William that she was a trustee of the London Air Ambulance, prompting him to admit how much he missed his time as a helicopter pilot with the East Anglican Air Ambulance.
He said that there was “an insane” amount of money needed to keep the air ambulances flying and that he was “looking at plans” to bring the different air ambulance services together.
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