Prince Harry shares rare 2-word health update on father King Charles

Prince Harry said his father King Charles is "getting better" when asked about his health in an interview this week. 

The Duke of Sussex, 42, who is not believed to have seen his father in person since returning to the UK in August, spoke to GQ's Zach Baron during his September visit to New York City, with the interview released during Tuesday's Omani State Visit.

"I would think having suffered the traumatic death of a parent, that something like this could be very triggering in that respect... having a sick parent now," Zach said, speaking of Harry's late mother, Princess Diana, who tragically died in a car crash in Paris when he was just 12 years old. 

Referencing his father, Harry responded: "Yeah, but he's getting better."

Harry, who is married to Meghan Markle, added: "I think there’s a big difference between losing one parent and losing two. 

"The friends of mine that have lost two, they go, 'Well, now I’m an orphan,' even if you’re in your 40s or 50s. I’ve never heard someone say that to me before." 

Harry's 'biggest' regret about mother Diana

Harry also opened up about his "biggest regret" regarding his mother, saying it was their final phone call together.

He said: "I’ve got friends and family who are suffering from cancer, I’ve had a mom that was taken away from me too soon, and I have spoken very openly about one of my biggest regrets is that last phone call I had with her.”

"If I'd known it was the last call with her, how different that conversation would have been. And I’m the one that has to live with that. And the fact that as a 12-year-old kid, all I wanted to do was go off and run and play with my cousins."

However, he added that becoming a parent himself, to Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, has changed his perspective. 

"Before I was a parent, that was a sort of bit of guilt and stuff that just really stuck with me. It was, like, heavy," he said.

Harry famously walked behind his mother's coffin at her funeral, alongside his older brother, Prince William, his father Charles, Prince Philip, and Diana's younger brother, Earl Spencer.

The Earl, Harry's uncle, recently discussed his disapproval of the "utterly barbaric" decision in his memoir about Diana, Swan Song. 

King Charles health latest

The King doesn't shy away from opening up about his health in public. 

At the RHS Sandringham Flower Show in July, a member of the public attending the show told His Majesty: "I'm the same age as you. You are looking good!", to which the King replied in good humour: "It gets much harder, doesn't it?"

In September, as he visited Peterhead Port in Aberdeenshire, Charles quipped that he didn't know if he'd still "be alive" by the time the area's latest projects were completed, earning him a laugh from his audience.

The monarch was diagnosed with cancer in 2024, just weeks apart from the Princess of Wales, who is now in remission. 

Following his diagnosis, Harry visited London to meet him, which is believed to have been the start of repairing their relationship. 

The King is still undergoing treatment, but in his most recent update in December 2025, he shared the good news that it had been "reduced".