The Prince of Wales was greeted with applause on a trip to the Francis Crick Institute in central London today. The heir to the throne, who was visiting the pioneering biomedical research centre to spotlight British innovation, drew hundreds of scientists out of their labs, despite his visit being kept a secret.
William received thunderous applause as he made his way to meet a group of researchers studying how the brain works. Neuroscientists Andreas Schaefer and Katharina Schmack talked the royal visitor through their studies on how “the neural neurons compute” and how scientists are developing ways to help restore speech in patients, which William said was “incredible”.
“Presumably you can understand emotional regulation?” the Prince asked. “Does that help us understand mental health? That wasn’t a deliberate segue, I’m trying to think of some good questions to ask!”
Katharina asked him to “imagine a young man in his 20s, about to graduate, thinking about proposing to his girlfriend, but then something shifts. He can’t sleep, he becomes restless, and he hears voices that say really bad things about him. That is what psychosis looks like.”
Told that the condition can affect one in 100 people, William looked shocked and replied: “Wow”.