Duke ‘on good form’ recuperating after surgery
BRITAIN: The Duke of Edinburgh is ‘‘on good form’’ as he recovers in hospital from a hip replacement, the princess royal said yesterday.
The duke, 96, has been recuperating at the King Edward VII Hospital in London since the surgery on Wednesday last week. Princess Anne is believed to have been the first member of the royal family to visit him, and her trip to his bedside suggests that he is likely to remain there for at least a few more days.
Buckingham Palace said the duke was in good spirits and ‘‘progressing satisfactorily’’ after the operation. He will need extensive rehabilitation, and will have to use crutches for the next four to six weeks.
His next public appearance is likely to be the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, on May 19.
Markle has been criticised by her half-sister, Samantha Grant, for ‘‘inviting complete strangers to the royal wedding, and not her family’’.
Grant, 53, made the remarks after the couple’s decision to invite more than 2600 members of the public into the grounds of Windsor Castle to see the wedding procession.
Grant, who has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair, tweeted on Thursday: ‘‘The Markle family is looking forward to our wedding invites. No one has one yet. Still waiting. I hope London is wheelchair friendly. Excited!’’
She later made pointed reference to the decision to allow selected members of the public into the castle grounds.
‘‘At issue is not a matter of closeness as more than 1000 complete strangers are invited,’’ she said. ‘‘Family is family. I have an uncle I have only seen once but I would never say he is not family because we are not close. Humanitarians move forward with love and kindness especially to family.
‘‘Smoke and mirrors cannot hide the elephant in the room. Out of respect, tradition and humanitarianism, the #Markles should be invited if 2000 complete strangers are invited.
‘‘Our uncle who got her the internship, brother, me, best friend of 30 years Nikki [Ninaki] Priddy, nephews. Fact.’’
Neither British Prime Minister Theresa May nor former US president Barack Obama will attend the wedding. Kensington Palace says there will be no official guests. All 600 of those invited have a direct relationship with Harry or Markle. However, 2640 members of the public will be invited into the castle grounds, including 1200 people who have demonstrated strong leadership in their communities.