Prince Philip ‘asked Prince Charles to visit hospital to discuss Royal Family’s future’

Prince Philip requested Prince Charles to visit him in hospital to discuss the future of the Royal Family, according to an ex-Palace official.

The 99-year-old was taken to hospital more than a week ago and has been kept at London’s private King Edward VII Hospital since.

Charles may have been asked to visit the Duke of Edinburgh to discuss what would happen when Charles “becomes the leading man of the family.”

The Queen’s former press officer Dickie Arbiter says the hospital trip may have been to have a precautionary discussion, reports The Mirror..

Speaking on True Royalty TV’s weekly The Royal Beat programme on Friday, Mr Arbiter said the Duke of Edinburgh will have been looking to the future when he is no longer around.

Mr Arbiter, 81, served the Queen from 1988 until 2000.

He was speaking following reports the Duke, 99, would be spending a second weekend in hospital while receiving treatment for an infection.

The Prince of Wales, 72, who is next in line to the throne, appeared in sombre mood after the 30-minute visit with his dad last Saturday.

Mr Arbiter told The Royal Beat: “I think it was at the request of the Duke that the Prince of Wales visited.

“To lay the ground. Look the man is 99, he is in with an infection.

“My guess is that he will come out, he will walk out and he will go back to Windsor.

“But eventually he is going to die and he was just saying to Charles, ‘one day you are going to be the leading man of the family’”.

Philip was admitted into hospital on February 16 as a precautionary measure after feeling unwell.

Buckingham Palace has said the Duke of Edinburgh, who turns 100 on June 10, is comfortable and responding to treatment.

This episode of The Royal Beat is available now on True Royalty TV.