The Royal Family has been in the spotlight again after Prince Harry’s controversial comments about the King’s health.
A medical professional has now shed light on what may have caused the monarch’s swelling condition(Image: Tim Rooke – Pool/Getty Images)
The Royal Family are never far from the spotlight but have found themselves in the headlines again this week thanks to Prince Harry. The Duke of Sussex has been speaking out again, this time in an interview with the BBC, where he expressed concerns about his dad, King Charles’ health, and claimed he didn’t know “how long” the monarch has to live.
Harry was back in the UK for another court hearing, with his appeal to have his full-time security protection for his family when they are visiting from the US being rejected. Harry, who moved with wife Meghan Markle and young son Prince Archie in 2020, has been fighting to have his police cover reinstated when he brings his family – including daughter Lilibet – to the UK, despite their decision to step away from official royal life and its duties.
Speaking to the BBC, Harry said earlier this week: “There have been so many disagreements between myself and some of my family.
Prince Harry gave an interview to the BBC this week (Image: BBC)
“Of course, they will never forgive me for lots of things, but… There’s no point in continuing to fight anymore. Life is precious. I don’t know how much longer my father has, he won’t speak to me because of this security stuff. It would be nice to reconcile.”
Harry has received backlash for the comments, with pal Ben Goldsmith telling the Daily Mail: “Tragic but true, Prince Harry’s behaviour is unforgivable,” hinting that the ongoing issues between him and his relatives shows no signs of easing.
This week marks two years since Charles began his reign as king, following the death of his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth. And it’s been no easy feat for the new monarch as he took on the role he’s been waiting his whole life to do.
As well as facing the continuing fallout between his family members – following Harry’s raft of high profile criticisms of ”the Firm’ in his 2021 memoir Spare and his and Meghan’s interview with Oprah Winfrey that year, not to mention their six-part 2022 Netflix documentary which captivated the world but put another nail in the coffin of royal relations, reportedly.
The King has also faced even more serious issues – that of double cancer diagnoses given to him and daughter in law Kate Middleton early last year, and the subsequent treatment they both had to endure.
But during this period two years ago, as Charles III marked his reign in a historic ceremony at Westminster Abbey, there was time for light-hearted chatter as the nation celebrated a momentous moment in its history, and much of that turned to the king’s ‘sausage fingers’.
King Charles III stands after being crowned during his coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey on May 6, 2023 (Image: Getty Images)
Ever since the then-Prince joked about his hands in 2012, after getting off a long haul flight to Australia, people have wondered what causes the swelling, as we reported previously.
At the time, one fan took to Twitter to say: “I’ve never noticed the hands of Prince Charles until this photo. Is he okay? They are so swollen.”
GP Chun Tang, Medical Director at Pall Mall Medical in Manchester, has given insight into the potential cause of the 74-year-old’s so-called ‘sausage’ fingers.
Dr Tang told the Daily Mail: “Often puffy fingers are a symptom of water retention which can be caused by numerous health conditions.
“This condition arises due to inflammation and can be a result of arthritis, multiple bacterial infections or even TB.
“Other possibilities include high salt levels, allergic reactions, medicinal side effects, injury and autoimmune disease.”
The technical term for the King’s ‘sausage fingers’ is dactylitis – which is used to describe severe swelling that affects fingers and toes. King Charles has a seemingly lighthearted approach to his hands’ condition.
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In a letter to his friend after his son, Prince William was born, he apparently joked about his hands, and suggested that William may grow to have similar fingers.
As quoted in Charles, The Man Who Will Be King by Howard Hodgson, Charles reportedly wrote: “I can’t tell you how excited and proud I am.
“He really does look surprisingly appetising and has sausage fingers just like mine.”
King Charles’ sausage fingers often worry royal fans (Image: Getty Images)
The King was also filmed joking about his chubby hands to his son, Prince William, during rehearsals for his Coronation in May 2023.
In footage from a documentary that year, Charles III: The Coronation Year, the Prince of Wales was seen attempting to close a small clasp on a lavish robe around his father.
William made the King laugh as he said: “On the day, that’s not going to go in” with the monarch joking back: “No, you haven’t got sausage fingers like mine.”
Queen Elizabeth also noted the sheer size of Charles’ hands after he was born and reportedly wrote a letter to her music teacher which said: “They are rather large, but with fine long fingers quite unlike mine and certainly unlike his father’s. It will be interesting to see what they become.”
During his Coronation, questions about the King’s fingers resurfaced as many questioned whether the monarch was only wearing one glove as part of the ceremony because of the issue, but it was just part of royal tradition.
Charles has never confirmed the cause of his swollen fingers.