Revitalised King keen to fill every gap in his diary

A year after Buckingham Palace announced the King was battling cancer, he remains extraordinarily busy, most recently meeting the Beckhams, Helen Mirren and Donatella Versace at a black-tie dinner at Highgrove.

King Charles III with Victoria and David Beckham.

A year after Buckingham Palace announced that the King had cancer, the royal family appears to be back up to a level of official engagements not seen since 2023.

It is understood that Charles, 76, is advising aides to fill any gaps in his diary.

The King is still undergoing treatment, but those close to him have decreed that the best medicine appears to be staying busy.

Last night (Friday) he hosted Stanley Tucci, the Hollywood actor, and Italian dignitaries for a black-tie dinner at Highgrove before the King and Queen’s April visit to Italy. Guests included Helen Mirren, Donatella Versace and David and Victoria Beckham. The former England football captain recently became an ambassador for the King’s Foundation and attended a state banquet at Buckingham Palace last year in honour of the Emir of Qatar.

As well as private dinners, Charles made a secret trip to the London Coliseum theatre on Tuesday to watch the English National Opera’s performance of Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance. The day before, he went to see an art exhibition.

The Queen, 77, did not join her husband at the theatre as she was having a special dinner with Helena Bonham Carter and Sir Stephen Fry at The London Library.

King Charles with actress Helen Mirren.

For Charles, the slimmed-down monarchy is now back to business and being dispatched far and wide. A palace source said: “After the health challenges of last year, there is a real sense of dynamism and enthusiasm that so many members of the family are now out and about.

“There are days when it’s hard for the palace teams to keep up, with so much going on and on so many different fronts, but that’s a nice problem to have.”

The Prince of Wales was dubbed the “Prince of Powertools” by the media when he tried his DIY skills in Scotland. William has also comforted bereaved teenagers in Widnes, Cheshire, and presented awards to young environmentalists inspired by his Earthshot project. The Princess of Wales also continued her return to duties this week when she joined pupils on a mini-bus for their outing to the National Portrait Gallery.

Even their youngest child, Prince Louis, six, pulled his weight when a photograph he took of his mother was released to mark World Cancer Day. Elsewhere, the Princess Royal was in Bristol, proving that a stint in intensive care had not put her off her stride.

Princess Anne, 74, returned to Southmead hospital to thank doctors who treated her for head wounds last year when it is thought she was struck by a horse.

Further afield, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh were in Nepal to praise the commitment of new Gurkha recruits. Yet it is the King who is setting the pace.

THE TIMES