William back to royal duties for first time since Kate revealed her cancer battle
THE Prince of Wales is to carry out his first official engagements since his wife revealed her cancer diagnosis.
William, who has spent the past three-and-a-half weeks with the Princess of Wales and their children during the Easter holidays, returns to public work tomorrow.
The 41-year-old will visit Surplus to Supper, a food redistribution charity in Sunbury-onThames, and then a youth centre in west London which benefits from the organisation’s regular deliveries.
Kate (42) appealed for her family to have time, space and privacy when she announced in a video message to the nation on March 22 that she had begun chemotherapy.
“This of course came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family. As you can imagine, this has taken time,” she added.
“It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment.
“But, most importantly, 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 OK.”
The princess’s cancer was discovered in post-operative tests following major abdominal surgery in January.
William was seen taking Prince George to an Aston Villa match last week — their first public outing since Kate’s announcement.
Kensington Palace said the prince is undertaking this week’s engagements to shine a spotlight on the organisation’s community and environmental impact.
He will meet volunteers who sort and redistribute food at the charity’s hub at Sunbury Cricket Club, and help them load the deliveries into their vans.
William will also lend a hand in the kitchen by joining the chefs as they prepare meals.
“Protecting the environment for future generations is one of the Prince of Wales’s key priorities,” the Palace said.
Meanwhile, the Duchess of Sussex has launched the first product from her new business venture — strawberry jam.
Meghan appears to have sent her friends a limited edition jar ahead of her brand American Riviera Orchard formally bringing out a range of items.
Fashion designer Tracy Robbins posted two images of the jam jar, which the duchess sent nestled in a basket of lemons.
She posted an image of the gift on her Instagram account with the words: “Breakfast, lunch and dinner just got a little sweeter.”
Another picture had the caption “Thank you for the delicious basket! I absolutely love this jam so not sure I’m sharing with anyone.”
In March Meghan announced her new business venture with an Instagram teaser video, showing the duchess cooking and arranging white hydrangeas and roses.
The brief vintage-style footage was set to Nancy Wilson’s I Wish You Love and closed with the brand’s logo above the word Montecito, a celebrity enclave in California where the duke and duchess live.
Little information has been released about Meghan’s new project but a trademark application filed in February shows the company wishes to offer downloadable and printed recipe books, table wear, textiles, and jams and marmalades.
Harry and Meghan were seen at a fundraising polo match on Friday in Florida for the duke’s Sentebale charity, with the duchess pictured with another recipient of her jam.
Delfina Blaquier, the wife of Harry’s good friend, Argentine polo player Nacho Figueras, who took part in the event, also posted on Instagram after sampling the gift.