How Did Prince Harry React To Queen Elizabeth's Latest Hospital Stay?
Queen Elizabeth II had everyone worried on October 20 when news broke that she had been taken to a hospital in London, as The New York Times reported. After undergoing some tests and spending the night under observation, the Queen of the United Kingdom, who turned 95 this year, was released the following day and was reportedly feeling well. "[T]he Queen attended hospital on Wednesday afternoon for some preliminary investigations, returning to Windsor Castle at lunchtime today, and remains in good spirits," Buckingham Palace said in a statement.
Ahead of her hospital stay, Elizabeth had canceled a trip to Northern Ireland. Following her health scare, she was advised to also skip the upcoming COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow, Scotland. "Her Majesty is disappointed not to attend the reception," Buckingham Palace said, according to NBC News, adding Elizabeth will provide a recorded speech for the occasion.
According to Us Weekly, the British royal family is worried about the queen's health, even though she has assured everyone she feels okay. "The queen says she's fine and doing well, but she's said that before, so naturally they're concerned," an unnamed source told the outlet. This has us wondering how Elizabeth's grandson, Prince Harry, reacted to the news across the pond, considering his relationship with his family has been strained for much of the past couple of years. Keep scrolling to learn what we know.
Prince Harry reportedly panicked over Queen Elizabeth's health scare
Even though Prince Harry now lives with his family on the side of the Atlantic in California, he is still close with Queen Elizabeth II. According to Us Weekly, the Duke of Sussex went into "panic mode" in light of the news his grandmother had been taken to the hospital. "He felt helpless being 5,000 miles away in Montecito, [California,] and has been checking-in non-stop with her," an insider told the magazine. Harry felt particularly anxious this time around because he was not around to say goodbye to his grandfather Prince Philip when he died in April. "[Harry] feels guilty about not saying goodbye ... [He] would never forgive himself if the same thing happened with his beloved grandmother," the source explained.
Despite his alleged feud with his brother, Prince William, and strained relationship with his father, Prince Charles, Harry has remained close with the queen. "When it comes to that relationship with the Queen, it is as strong as ever — [he and Meghan Markle] have nothing but love for her," biographer Omid Scobie said on "Good Morning America" (via Marie Claire). This became evident when Harry and Meghan honored Elizabeth by naming their daughter Lilibet after the queen's childhood pet name.
According to Us Weekly, Harry is planning to go to the United Kingdom for the holidays to ensure his grandmother gets a chance to meet her great-granddaughter and namesake and see their son, Archie, again.
Prince Harry and Queen Elizabeth have always had a strong relationship
Despite Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's acrimonious royal exit in 2020, the power couple has always remained cordial when it comes to Queen Elizabeth. In fact, Harry and the queen have always had a strong bond together ever since Princess Diana's youngest son was a child. From Harry's goofy shenanigans, which always elicited a reaction from the queen, to his kind and helpful ways, the Duke of Sussex never held back in front of his grandmother.
In fact, royal expert Katie Nicholl, who authored the book "William and Harry: Behind the Palace Walls," revealed that the queen has fallen victim to Harry's pranks on occasion. Nicholl, who referred to Harry as "more troublesome" than brother Prince William (via Us Weekly), recalled a story where Harry changed the queen's voicemail message. If you rang the queen and didn't receive a response at this particular point in time, you were probably greeted by Harry stating, "Hey, wassup? This is Liz! Sorry, I'm away from the throne. For a hotline to Philip, press one, for Charles press two, for the corgis, press three."
And despite rumors of tension between the Duchess of Sussex and Queen Elizabeth, they couldn't be any further from the truth. In fact, the queen gave her "Most Dearly Beloved Grandson" her blessing to marry Meghan — whom Nicholl notes is "a positive person" in the queen's eyes.
Queen Elizabeth always sympathized with Prince Harry for this reason
The reason Queen Elizabeth has a soft spot for Prince Harry runs much deeper than you'd think. According to Vanity Fair, the queen's keenness toward Harry stems from the fact that she sees her sister, Princess Margaret, in her grandson. It's justified in such a way that Margaret was often overshadowed by sister Elizabeth's success, much like how Harry was overlooked in favor of brother Prince William.
"I think the Queen knows that being the spare is hard and a part of her recognizes that Harry was a sometimes a bit of a lost soul just like her sister," royal biographer Andrew Morton stated. "She has always wanted to protect Harry and I think in part that's because she watched Margaret fall victim to the system. Shutting out Margaret didn't help and the Queen has learned from that. She didn't want history to repeat itself with Harry." It was also noted that she has "infinite patience" with Harry, given her calm and collected demeanor during the Megxit debacle of 2020. Some bonds are strong enough to withstand even the worst intercontinental royal scandal.