Royal experts call one family member “the sister Prince William never had”

The royal family has endured a difficult 2024, with both King Charles and the Princess of Wales confirming the news that they had been diagnosed with undisclosed forms of cancer earlier this year.

The two senior working royals were forced to take a temporary step back from duty to focus on their respective recoveries, with Prince William having to step up in their absences. And while King Charles has now returned to duties and Princess Kate is expected to scale up her public appearances in the coming months, Prince William still appears to be taking on major responsibilities as heir to the throne.

"The weight of the world is on [Prince William's] shoulders," royal expert Robert Jobson explained to HELLO! earlier this year. And as the pressure has mounted on the future King, his support network is said to have got even more solid.

The Mountbatten-Windsor cousins have played a crucial role in this, with royal commentator Rebecca English explaining via the Daily Mail that "they are remarkably close."

English has praised the "easy relationship that William enjoys with his cousins", describing it as "a warmth that goes all the way back to fun family summers at Balmoral, Christmases at Sandringham - and now finds expression in the very modern medium of shared family WhatsApp groups."

One royal cousin who is reported to have stepped up in particular this year is Zara Tindall who royal expert Ingrid Seward has described as "the sister William never had".

“They’ve always had terrific fun together and they’ve always supported each other," Seward explained to HELLO! of the two cousins, who are just one year apart in age. "[Zara] is very bright and intuitive about people."

This comes amid the reports that Prince William has found a brother-figure in Zara's older brother, Peter Phillips, who experts have described as a "trusted sounding board for the future King".

"Peter will be a great support to [William] – both as a cousin and as someone who has been there all his life and understands the institution," explained HELLO!'s Royal Editor, Emily Nash, crediting his "pragmatic, common sense approach to things."

She continued: "Like the rest of the family, I'm sure Peter is lending his support to William and Kate as they face her cancer treatment."

We will continue to update this story.