Prince Harry says Queen Elizabeth on ‘great form’, wants her to be ‘protected’

Reflecting on his last week’s meeting with the monarch, Prince Harry told TV host Hoda Kotb that she is in ‘good spirits’ following her recent bout with Covid-19
He also said that living in the US genuinely feels like home after being ‘welcomed with open arms’

Britain

Tribune News Service

Published: 2:39pm, 20 Apr 2022

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Prince Harry said it’s been “great” to see his grandmother Queen Elizabeth again and gave an update on her health.

Speaking to “Today” show anchor Hoda Kotb from the fifth Invictus Games, an international sports competition for injured veterans and service members which he founded, Harry reflected on his visit with the British monarch at Windsor Castle.

“Being with her, it was great,” Harry said in a video clip of the interview, set to air on Wednesday. “It was just so nice to see her.”

“She’s on great form,” Harry said of his grandmother who suffered a bout of Covid-19 in February.

The queen, who turns 96 on Thursday, has been experiencing mobility problems, cutting back on public duties after spending a night in hospital in October and testing positive for Covid-19. She attended a memorial service last month for her late husband Prince Philip and has continued to meet virtually with diplomats and politicians.

The queen also did not attend the Easter Sunday service at St. George’s Chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle, a fixture in the royals’ calendar.

But, according to Harry, the queen is still in good spirits. “She’s always got a great sense of humour with me,” Harry added. “I’m just making sure that she’s, you know, protected and got the right people around her.”

“It was really nice to catch up with her,” he added.

Britain’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan at the Invictus Games in The Hague, Netherlands, on April 17. Photo: EPA-EFE

Harry was accompanied by wife Meghan during his UK visit.

For Meghan, 40, the April 14 trip marked her first time in the country since March 2020 when she and Harry, 37, stepped away from royal duties and moved to California.

Before that, Harry was last seen in the UK in July 2021 for the unveiling of a statue of his mother Princess Diana at Kensington Palace in London.

Of living in the US, Harry revealed to Kotb that it genuinely feels like home, gushing about the warm reception he and his family have received.

“We’ve been welcomed with open arms, and [we’ve] got such a great community up in Santa Barbara,” Harry said.

In March 2021, Harry and Meghan told Oprah Winfrey in a TV interview that their decision to leave the UK was based in part because they were fed up with racism in the British media and in the royal family. Harry said he wanted to protect Meghan, who said she became suicidal from the pressure of royal life.