Prince Charles tests positive for Covid for second time

By Lianne Kolirin and Max Foster, CNN

Prince Charles is in isolation having tested positive for Covid-19, Clarence House has said.

The heir to the British throne, who is 73 years old, had to cancel his attendance at an event in the English city of Winchester on Thursday, according to a statement from his official Twitter account.

Charles met with the Queen “recently,” a royal source told CNN after the news emerged. The source did not elaborate on how recently the meeting took place.

Her Majesty is not displaying symptoms and the situation will continue to be monitored, the source said.

In a statement issued at midday local time, Clarence House tweeted: “This morning The Prince of Wales has tested positive for COVID-19 and is now self-isolating.

“HRH is deeply disappointed not to be able to attend today’s events in Winchester and will look to reschedule his visit as soon as possible,” the statement added. He had been due to unveil a statue of a Jewish business woman from medieval times.

This is the second time the prince has tested positive. Charles first tested positive in late March 2020, as countries around the world were first feeling the effects of the pandemic. Back in 2020 Prince William also tested positive, soon after his father.

Charles, who is fully vaccinated, said at the time he was first infected that he had been lucky to only experience mild symptoms, adding he’d “got away with it quite lightly.”

The Queen marked her platinum jubilee on Sunday by expressing her “sincere wish” that her daughter-in-law, the Duchess of Cornwall, should become Queen Consort once Charles is king.

Charles’ positive test comes just hours after he spent the evening meeting dozens of people at the British Museum celebrating the work of the British Asian Trust, of which he is the founding patron.

The trust reported that during his address at the event, the prince — who was accompanied by his wife, Camilla — said: “I cannot quite believe it is almost two years to the day that my wife and myself were able to be with all of you to celebrate the work of the British Asian Trust. Since then, across the globe, there has been terrible loss of life from COVID-19 and we have especially seen the devastating impact throughout South Asia. In these most challenging times, the British Asian Trust has run four significant fundraising appeals which have so far raised almost £20m ($27 million).”

Also in attendance at the event were the UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Home Secretary Priti Patel.

PA reported that the duchess continued with her engagements Thursday, visiting Paddington Haven, a sexual assault referral center in west London.

Back in December Charles and Camilla released a statement commemorating the one-year anniversary of the administration of the world’s first Covid-19 vaccine, urging more people to take up the shot.

“It is the most enormous tribute to the remarkable ingenuity and determination of everyone involved that, one year after the first Covid-19 vaccination, more than a hundred million doses have now been delivered,” the statement said.

The world’s first Covid-19 vaccine dose was administered to 90-year-old Margaret Keenan in the United Kingdom on December 8, 2020, nine months after the World Health Organization declared the global pandemic.

Prince Charles is the third royal this week to test positive for Covid-19. Spain’s King Felipe VI tested positive Wednesday morning, after he began to show mild symptoms the previous night, Spain’s Royal Household said in a statement. Queen Margrethe II of Denmark also tested positive a day earlier.

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Anusha Rathi contributed to this report.