Prince William Gave No Hint of Princess Kate’s Cancer Diagnosis at Recent Event: ‘He Was Dealing with So Much’ (Exclusive)
Prince William Gave No Hint of Princess Kate’s Cancer Diagnosis at Recent Event: ‘He Was Dealing with So Much’ (Exclusive)
Tessy Ojo of the Diana Award tells PEOPLE the Prince of Wales was absorbing the positivity in the evening’s celebration amid his personal struggles
Prince William kept calm and carried on at a Diana Award charity event in London just a week before his wife Kate Middleton revealed her cancer diagnosis to the world.
Tessy Ojo, chief executive of the Diana Award, is one of several people who interacted with the Prince of Wales, 41, during his appearance on March 14. Ojo tells PEOPLE that William gave no indication of just how much he was grappling with, keeping focus on the night’s honorees.
Learning Kate’s cancer news today “makes [William’s stoicism] even sadder, as it took place against the backdrop of all the conspiracy theories of the past few weeks,” says Ojo. “It reinforces of the danger of the society we live in, where rumors get picked up and almost become a false reality.”
That evening, the future monarch spent time with the group of Legacy Award recipients.
“He said that it was refreshing to hear all the amazing things the young people were doing. In the context now, knowing he was dealing with so much and that he was in a place where there was such positivity, it was refreshing,” Ojo says. “In some sense, when you’re dealing with such bad news, you need hope and positivity, and the event was all about that.
“Everyone needs hope,” she continues, “and I know he had heaps of that on that evening. And hopefully, he took that home.”
When William didn’t mention his wife, 42, while socializing at the event, many believed it was due to the timing — at the height of speculation following the Mother’s Day photo controversy.
Moving forward, Ojo is hopeful that the Waleses will be treated with “kindness.”
“The least we can do is show kindness. I hope that we will learn but I doubt that we will, when you look at what they’ve been through the last couple of months. It has been awful.”