The King has paid a surprise visit to joggers at a local Sandringham parkrun organised in partnership with the Move Against Cancer charity.
Charles attended the event on Saturday morning as a spectator, surprising the Sandringham runners for the second year in a row and ahead of World Cancer Day next week.
The monarch’s appearance comes just hours after the latest tranche of documents in the Epstein files was released, with disturbing photos seemingly showing his brother Andrew crawling on all fours over a female.
The parkrun, organised in partnership with Move Against Cancer’s 5K Your Way group, was set up to support those living with and beyond cancer, as well as families, friends and healthcare professionals.
Last year, the King chatted to members of the event as they met to mark the occasion with cake and coffee at the visitors’ centre on his Norfolk estate.
Charles has been receiving cancer treatment as an outpatient since early February 2024.
In December last year, the head of state announced in a video message that his cancer treatment would be reduced in the new year, adding the ‘good news’ was down to early diagnosis, successful care and following ‘doctors’ orders’.
The 5KYW run takes place on the last Saturday morning of every month and encourages anyone impacted by cancer to walk, jog, run, cheer or volunteer at more than 120 parkrun events across the UK and Ireland on the last Saturday of each month.
Parkrun was founded in 2004 and, more than 20 years on, hundreds of thousands of people across 22 countries and five continents take part in free, weekly, timed five-kilometre running events each weekend in parks around the world.
The king announced in February 2024 that he had been diagnosed with cancer, and, in a break from centuries of secrecy around royal health, he has since spoken openly about the illness, using his story to promote cancer awareness and treatment.
The king has not officially disclosed what type of cancer he has or what kind of treatment he is receiving.
The palace said it was an intentional decision designed to ensure his message reaches the widest possible audience.
The king’s cancer was discovered after treatment for an enlarged prostate.
While doctors ruled out prostate cancer, tests revealed ‘a separate issue of concern,’ palace officials said last year.
Charles suspended his public appearances for about two months after his diagnosis. Since returning to the public eye, he has visited cancer treatment centres across the country and shared stories with fellow patients.
Cancer charities said the number of people seeking cancer information jumped after the king revealed he was undergoing treatment last year.
Cancer Research U.K. said about 100,000 people have visited its Screening Checker website since it was launched on December 5, most of them since the king’s statement on Friday.
The charity’s Chief Executive, Michelle Mitchell, said: ‘When public figures speak openly about their cancer diagnosis, it can prompt others to check in on their health.’
Broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby, the king’s authorised biographer, said the statement was ‘a remarkable thing for a monarch to do.’
‘It takes guts, and the fact that he came out and did that will save lives,’ Dimbleby said.
The Princess of Wales, who announced her own cancer diagnosis six weeks after her father-in-law, has also given updates on her treatment. Kate announced in January that her cancer is in remission.
Charles’ surprise appearance at the running event comes less than a day after disturbing photos released in the Epstein files appeared to show Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor crouching on all fours over a female lying on the floor.
In the three photographs, a man believed to be Andrew can be seen leaning over the woman who is sprawled face up with their arms spread out.
He is staring directly at the camera in one picture, while in another, he has placed his left hand on the female’s stomach.
The man, thought to be the former Duke of York, is barefoot and is wearing jeans and a white polo shirt, along with a silver watch.
Another person can be seen in the photographs, sitting in a leopard-print chair with their feet up on a table.
Like much of the material released in the Epstein files, it is unclear when or where the images were taken, and no further context is given. Last month, a photo of Andrew lying on the laps of five women at Sandringham was released in another batch of files.
More than three million more documents were published last night by the US Department of Justice. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said there have been ‘extensive redactions’ to the documents.
Redactions include information with personally identifiable details of victims, medical files, any depictions of child sexual abuse material, anything that would jeopardise an active investigation, or anything depicting death or physical abuse.
Blanche added that they have blurred the faces of any women, other than sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, but have not redacted the faces of any men.
Among the documents was the revelation that Andrew invited Jeffrey Epstein to dinner at Buckingham Palace days after his house arrest ended. He promised ‘lots of privacy’ to the paedophile shortly after he was granted his freedom following a conviction for soliciting a minor.
