Prince William reveals why he and Princess Kate told children ‘everything’ about cancer diagnosis
Prince William has spoken candidly about navigating parenthood through crisis, revealing how Princess Kate and he approached their children’s “difficult questions” after both their mother and King Charles were diagnosed with cancer last year.
In a rare and emotional interview on Brazilian television, the Prince of Wales said he and Princess Kate agreed that honesty was the only way forward when explaining the family’s health challenges to Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7.
“Every family goes through difficult times and faces challenges together,” he said.
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“We decided to tell our children everything, both the good news and the bad.
“We explain to them why certain things happen and why they might feel upset. Many questions might come up without answers. I think all parents go through that. There’s no rulebook for being a parent, and we chose to talk about everything.”
The interview, hosted by Brazilian TV presenter Luciano Huck for his popular Domingão program, was filmed during Prince William’s five-day trip to Brazil for his environmental initiative, the Earthshot Prize.
While there, the Prince represented King Charles at COP30, delivering a heartfelt speech on continuing his father’s environmental work.
The Sun reported that following the visit, Prince William was made an honorary citizen of Rio de Janeiro, the “Cidade Maravilhosa” honour, in recognition of his humanitarian and environmental advocacy.
Rio City Council President Carlo Caido said the Prince’s visit has left a lasting impression.
“Prince William truly deserves to become an honorary carioca,” he said.
“His recent visit to our city was remarkable and is already missed by many. He has shown genuine commitment to humanitarian and environmental causes, as we can see during the COP30 in Belém.”
During the sit-down, Mr Huck presented Prince William with a touching photograph of his late mother, Princess Diana, taken during her 1991 visit to São Paulo, a moment showing her holding a child with HIV, defying stigma at the time.
Mr Huck told Prince William his mother “became a very important figure in the fight against prejudice”
Prince William replied, “I carry her social and humanitarian legacy with me every day.
The conversation turned deeply personal as the Prince discussed his family’s health battle with parenting philosophy, revealing that he and Kate split the school run and try to be “present for their children as much as possible.”
Prince William said he enjoyed joining playdates, sports days and school matches, joing that he often serves as a “taxi driver” whenever his schedule allows.
He also spoke about the couple’s cautious stance on technology.
Prince William has said that not allowing his 12-year-old son Prince George to have a mobile phone has “become a little bit of a tense issue”
“It is really hard. Our children don’t have phones,” he said.
“When George moves onto secondary school, maybe he’ll have one with limited access. We talk to him and explain why we don’t think it’s right. With full access, children end up seeing things on the internet that they shouldn’t. But with restricted access, I think it’s good for messaging.”
