Moment King jokes ‘I’m still alive!’ when punter asks ‘how are you’ – as his cancer treatment continues into next year
HEARTWARMING footage shows the moment Charles joked “I’m still alive” after he was asked about his health during his final engagement before Christmas.
Charles and Camilla met with local community volunteers, young people, emergency services, and faith representatives, at Waltham Forest Town Hall, north London.
Sikh faith representative, Harvinder Rattan, said: “Your Majesty, good morning, how are you?”
The King, 76, smiled and jokingly replied: “I’m still alive.”
It comes as it was confirmed King Charles‘s cancer treatment will be ongoing in the New Year.
Charles and Camillla will meet locals at a reception where refreshments were provided by Havens Café, whose owner Usman Khalid is a former asylum seeker who now trains refugees to be baristas.
Charles spoke to Usman and said his coffee “looks good.”
Camilla handed two bags of Buckingham Palace teddy bears to community group Citizens UK who will donate the toys to local children.
George Gaillett, community organiser at Citizens UK, said afterwards: “The Queen said ‘we hope you can distribute this and they can go to the right people’.”
Alexandra Martinelli-Kinmouth, of charity The Together Space, made the King a cup of tea.
She said afterwards: “I said to him I hope it’s not too cold and spoke about my charity.
“He smiled and said he hoped it had some honey in, which it did.”
The donated food to Tracey Rogers, of Highams Park Hub, to be handed out at a food bank.
Tracey said afterwards: “I went to the Coronation and told him the atmosphere was absolutely phenomenal.”
Monwara Ali, CEO of Waltham Forest Community Hub, gave the King a high-five.
She said afterwards: “It’s important that our generation, particularly those in leadership roles, need to engage with the younger generation; it’s part of our succession plan.
“He was happy to do it and the fact he agreed was amazing.”
Outside, the King enjoyed a rendition by A Little Choir of Joy, a children’s choir made up of 8 to 12 year-olds from across schools in the borough.
He went to speak to the youngsters and said: “I hope you have a Happy Christmas. And also to your poor teachers.”
The King went to speak to dozens of well-wishers who turned out while the Queen waited in the car as it was too cold.
Caroline Akuffo, 77, showed the King a black and white photo she had kept framed on her wall from a meeting in Osaka, Japan, in 1970.
She said: “It was a trade fair. He came to the pavilion and I remember shaking his hands and they were so soft it was like holding cotton wool.
“He was so happy to see the photo and said I was wearing a lovely dress.”
Thousands of residents in Waltham Forest held a peaceful anti-racism protest following the nationwide disorder after the stabbing of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed party in Southport.
Waltham Forest was officially recognised as a Borough of Sanctuary by the national charity City of Sanctuary in December 2023.
It is the final royal engagement before the King and Queen take a Christmas break.
It comes after news that King Charles’ cancer treatment will reportedly continue into next year.
The King’s recovery is “moving in a positive direction” but is still ongoing, Sky News reports.
King Charles' health battle
Charles’ ordeal began in January when he revealed he needed a corrective procedure for an enlarged prostate.
He decided to allow the public to know what he was going through, which resulted in a huge outpouring of sympathy.
Charles was touched by the public reaction but also significantly buoyed when it was revealed the NHS website received 11 times more daily visits from men with similar concerns.
But then his condition would take a turn for the worse.
Charles was due to spend two nights in the London Clinic — where Kate was also being treated — so when he spent a third night in care, people started to become concerned.
Those worries were realised when tests revealed cancer.
After the major health development was announced on February 6, the King postponed all public-facing engagement for a period.
The King was withdrawn from all public duty for 103 days although he continued reading government red boxes.
He spent around three months out of the public eye and returned in April with a visit to a cancer centre in London.
Royal fans were ecstatic as he emerged from the Easter Sunday service in March 2024 and was greeted by 60 well-wishers at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
In May, his public comeback began at London’s University College Hospital MacMillan Cancer Centre where he told patients he was having treatment later that day and confessed in an off-script moment he had lost his sense of taste.
Charles also attended D-Day commemorations in June when the King had treatment the day before the Portsmouth ceremony.
He then travelled to France but avoided the gathering of world leaders because the event often overran by several hours and instead attended a short service with British D-Day veterans.
The monarch then travelled to Australia in October in a hugely successful tour followed by Samoa in the South Pacific.
Today’s public engagement in Waltham Forest was the last before Charles enjoys a well-earned Christmas break.