The Duke of Cambridge, 38, has received his first dose of the coronavirus vaccine on Tuesday. William received his jab on May 18th at the Science Museum in London, close to his home at Kensington Palace where he lives with wife Catherine and their three children; Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. The vaccine centre at the museum opened in March 2021.
It is understood he received the vaccine that was available at the centre, where Health Secretary Matt Hancock was also inoculated. But it is not known which one he was given.
Embed from Getty ImagesKensington Palace did not say which vaccine was given to the second in line to the throne, but he will have been entitled to the Pfizer/BioNTech or Oxford-AstraZeneca jab, because he is aged under 40.
He is the latest senior royal to share having received the vaccine and he follows in the footsteps the Queen and the Prince of Wales. However, neither of them were pictured receiving the jab. William has previously spoken out in favour of the vaccine, hailing the ‘monumental’ success of the programme and expressing his desire to have his first dose.
Prince William, who is 38 and the second in-line to the throne, shared the wonderful news on his social media accounts and thanked everyone who worked on the vaccination programme.
The prince, who was vaccinated, shared a photo of the moment he received the jab along with the message, ” On Tuesday I received my first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. To all those working on the vaccine rollout – thank you for everything you’ve done and continue to do.”
Embed from Getty ImagesIn January, it was announced that the Duke’s grandmother, The Queen Elizabeth, and his late grandfather, Prince Philip, received their first doses of the coronavirus vaccine from a household doctor at Windsor Castle.
Prince William’s father, Prince Charles, 72, received his first dose in February along with wife Camilla, 73 and the Duchess of Cornwall has spoken several times about overcoming her fear of needles to get her own jabs against the virus.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Duchess of Cambridge, who is 39, is yet to get her first dose but a source said she will have it soon.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Duke of Cambridge, who will be 39 next month, has had to wait until now for his age group to be invited to receive the vaccination and received his first dose after the UK-wide vaccine rollout was expanded to people in their 30s last week.
Royal biographer Angela Levin, author of the 2015 book Diana’s Babies: Kate, William and the Repair of a Broken Family, tweeted this morning: ‘Very impressive that senior royals didn’t jump the queue.’
William fell ill with coronavirus in April 2020, shortly after the Prince of Wales tested positive on 26 March and shortly after Boris Johnson was struck down by it.
The Duke of Cambridge did not publicly confirm that he had the virus, but according to reports he told one observer at an engagement: “There were important things going on and I didn’t want to worry anyone.”
He was treated by palace doctors and followed government guidelines by isolating at the family home Anmer Hall, in Norfolk.
Embed from Getty ImagesA source told the Sun: “William was hit pretty hard by the virus – it really knocked him for six. At one stage he was struggling to breathe, so obviously everyone around him was pretty panicked.
“After seeing medics and testing positive – which was obviously quite a shock given how fit and healthy he is – William was determined it should be business as usual though. He was determined to fulfil his engagements.”
Despite fighting the debilitating illness, the Prince still managed to pull off 14 telephone and video call engagements in April.
William also spoke out against misinformation over the coronavirus and vaccines on social media and online.
Embed from Getty ImagesIn February he urged people get jabbed so “younger generations” will feel “it’s really important for them to have it”.
Speaking to two clinically vulnerable women, he said: “Catherine and I are not medical experts by any means but we can wholeheartedly support having vaccinations.
“We’ve spoken to a lot of people about it and the uptake has been amazing so far.
“We’ve got to keep it going so the younger generations also feel that it’s really important for them to have it. Social media is awash with misinformation so we have to be a bit careful who we believe.”
Click here to read more about the Duke of Cambridge contracting the virus.
Prince William is among more than 37 million people in the UK – around 70% of the adult population – to have received their first dose, according to the government’s latest statistics.
The UK’s vaccine rollout has been extended for the second time this week as people aged 34 and 35 in England will now be offered a jab.
NHS England has confirmed the million-plus people aged 34 and 35 will receive a text message on 20 May or 21 May asking them to book their COVID-19 vaccine appointment.
People in their early thirties could get the chance to be vaccinated “over the next few days and week”, NHS England said.
The progress of the vaccine rollout varies across the UK. Over-30s are eligible in Scotland, while Northern Ireland has started offering the vaccination to anyone aged over 25.
In Wales, some areas have seen almost half of those aged under 30 receive first doses.
Embed from Getty ImagesAhead of Prince William revealing he had his jab, England’s deputy chief medical officer said yesterday Britain is in a ‘straight race’ to vaccinate its population in order to outrun the threat of the Indian coronavirus mutation.
Professor Jonathan Van-Tam said the jab-rate over the next few weeks would be crucial for ensuring the Prime Minister could lift all Covid restrictions on June 21, as set out in his road map out of lockdown.
As part of efforts to ‘turbo-boost’ the vaccine programme, more than one million people aged 34 and 35 will receive a text message today or tomorrow asking them to come forward for their vaccine, NHS England said.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt comes amid growing confidence within the Government that the vaccines available in the UK will work against the Indian strain and that the B1617.2 mutation will prove less transmissible than first feared.
Almost 3,000 cases of the Indian variant have been identified in the UK – up from the 2,323 declared on Monday – and surge testing has been announced in a number of areas in a bid to control its spread.
Embed from Getty ImagesProf Van-Tam told a Downing Street press conference yesterday: “I pitch this personally as a straight race between the transmissibility of this new variant… and vaccine delivery.
“The NHS is doing everything it can to turbo-boost that, and that is the challenge that’s ahead of us in the next two to three to four weeks, to make sure that we outrun the virus through really vigorous pull-through on vaccine delivery.”
Embed from Getty ImagesProf Van-Tam said scientists would have more information by next week on how transmissible the Indian variant is versus the Kent strain, which has become dominant in the UK.
Experts had feared it could be up to 50 per cent more transmissible, but the Government adviser suggested studies could find it is only half that.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe spread of the variant of concern had cast doubt on next month’s plans to ease the remaining restrictions in England, but Boris Johnson told the Commons his administration had ‘increasing confidence’ that vaccines would prove effective against it.
Sources confirmed Mr Johnson told the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs he was ‘even more cautiously optimistic’ than last week about being able to scrap all restrictions next month.
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