Royal news – live: King Charles to miss key summit days after ‘pause’ in cancer treatment approved by doctors

Prince Edward yesterday met with young people taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh International Award.

The meeting came as part of a four-day tour of Malta that will see the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh undertake a packed schedule of engagements as they celebrate the 60th anniversary of the country’s independence.

The royal family said on their official Twitter/X account: “The Duke of Edinburgh was also able to tour the new Maltese HQ of @intaward where he met young people taking part in activities as they work towards their bronze, silver and gold awards.”

Prince Harry shared a sweet detail about Princess Lilibet’s hair at the WellChild Awards last week.

Giving a rare insight into the young princess’s life, he said that Lilibet, three, had inherited her mother Meghan Markle’s thick hair.

Hello! magazine’s CEO, Sophie Vokes-Dudgeon, who was in attendance, revealed: “He marvelled that it won’t be long until Lili can sit on hers.”

Harry, 40, flew to the UK especially for the event, which celebrates the achievements of seriously ill young people and their carers.

The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh will continue their brief tour of Malta to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the country’s independence today.

Their Wednesday schedule will see them visit the home shared by the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in the early days of their marriage between 1949 and 1951, Villa Guardamangia.

The couple lived there while Philip was stationed in the country as a serving Royal Navy officer.

King Charles will not attend the COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan next month after the government exercised “an abundance of caution” regarding his health, it has been reported.

This comes after it was claimed that the monarch will temporarily “pause” his cancer treatment during his nine-day tour of Australia and Samoa this month after getting the go-ahead from doctors.

The decision was also made in the interests of his schedule, The Mirror reports, with the event taking place from 11 to 22 November – two weeks after the king returns from his overseas tour this month.

A source said: “The king will not be going to COP. He has not been asked by the government to attend the event and he is also mindful of his own commitments following the upcoming autumn tour.”

Buckingham Palace has been approached for comment.

The monarch, who turns 76 next month, was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer earlier this year following a routine procedure to treat an enlarged prostate.

The royal family have given a rare insight into the ongoing restoration work being carried out at Buckingham Palace.

Sharing a video to Twitter/X, the official royal family account explained: “The Reservicing Programme has been continuing work in the Basement of Buckingham Palace, replacing old electrical cabling under the floors and throughout the historic building.”

In response to the footage, one watcher praised the work being done to modernise the iconic building.

They wrote: “Preserving Buckingham Palace’s history while modernizing its infrastructure is essential. It’s great to see such important work being done to maintain this iconic landmark!”

A town built to King Charles’s specifications of an idealised community is suffering from a serious waste collection problem.

Residents of Poundbury, Dorset, which is built on Duchy of Cornwall land, have now spoken out in a bid to solve the problem, appealing to the king directly.

One local told The Telegraph: “There are rats everywhere and the smell is awful. No one seems to be bothered.”

A second said that the king “would be horrified” and compared the development, which is due to be completed in 2026, to a “third-world country.”

Explaining the root of the problem, a third added: “The number of bins is not sufficient, there needs to be a second refuse and recycling point. It’s carnage around Christmas with rubbish everywhere.”

The palace has revealed the latest work that has been done in Buckingham Palace’s extensive reservicing programme.

The refurbishment is expected to cost £369m and began five years ago.

In a clip shared to social media, the palace offered a glimpse into the replacement of 3.5km of electric cabling, which had previously not been updated since the 1950s.

It wrote on X: “The Reservicing Programme has been continuing work in the Basement of Buckingham Palace, replacing old electrical cabling under the floors and throughout the historic building.”

James Middleton has said that his older sister the Princess of Wales was an “exemplary” student in his new memoir, Meet Ella: The Dog Who Saved My Life.

The memoir, which recounts the 37-year-old’s struggles with his mental health, touches upon his radically different school experience.

He wrote: “Naturally, Catherine and Pippa, being exemplary students, managed to get through their entire school lives without a single demerit, but I amassed a handful of them every term.

“So while the female Middletons would be applauded for being helpful to teachers – opening doors and carrying books for them – I’d undo all their kind deeds by scampering along the corridor instead of walking because I was late for a lesson.”

Royal doctors gave Charles, 75, permission to briefly halt the weekly cycle in order to fly around the world for his key visit Down Under, followed by a state visit to Samoa in the South Pacific.

The monarch, who was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of the disease in February, will receive treatment up until his departure, and resume the outpatient appointments when he returns to the UK, the Daily Mail reported.

He will be away for 11 days, with the tour covering nine days with two days of travel either side, and his entourage will include, as is usual for Charles’s official overseas visits, his doctor.

The long-haul trip with the Queen is a major milestone for the King.

It will be his most significant overseas tour since his cancer diagnosis and his first to Australia as the nation’s head of state, looking set to prompt debate about the future of the monarchy in the country and whether it should become a republic.

King Charles is reported to have finally started eating lunch and his meal of choice is a millennial staple – the humble avocado.

The monarch, 75, has reportedly acted upon the advice of his wife, Queen Camilla, and doctors, who have urged him to stop skipping lunch as he continues to battle an undisclosed form of cancer.

A source told the MailOnline: “With some reluctance, he now has something to eat at lunchtime – a snack, really. He now eats half an avocado to sustain him through the day. It’s important, particularly if you have got an illness.”