Harry arrives in UK for awards as Charles spends time in Scotland – live

Can the royal family and King Charles adapt to the modern age and stay relevant? Will Harry be able to rejoin The Firm? And what will the next generation of royalty be like?

These and more questions from our audience were answered in The Independent’s virtual event on the future of the royal family.

Hosted by assistant editor Victoria Harper, the panel features bestselling authors Anna Pasternak and Tessa Dunlop, plus royal historian Jonathan Spangler.

William, 42, launched the prize in 2020 to recognise and support individuals making significant contributions towards protecting the environment.

As part of his role as patron of Wellchild, Prince Harry met with families and children, including Noah Noah Nicholson, who has complex medical needs.

He has cerebral palsy, chronic lung disease and other serious health issues, but his mother, Tracey Nicholson, 42, from Grimsby, said he remains happy and positive and lives life to the full.

The seven-year-old brought his prized comfort toys – George the cat and Ratty the Giraffe in the shape of a blanket – and delighted in throwing them on to the floor.

When Ms Nicholson apologised for her son’s antics, Harry, who is WellChild’s patron, replied: “Don’t apologise, I love it.”

Harry recognised Ratty the Giraffe and called the blanket comforter “lovey”, a name used in American, and said: “Every parent has about six spare.”

At one point Noah, who has brain damage and won the most Inspirational Child aged four to six, grabbed Harry’s beard and made him grin.

The Duke of Sussex has been upstaged by a boisterous boy who threw his toys away during an awards night and laughed as Harry picked them up.

The duke met seven-year-old Noah Nicholson – who has complex medical conditions – when he returned to the UK to honour children, teenagers and their parents who have been recognised with awards from the charity WellChild.

Harry was asked by some of the youngsters whether he had a passport, and received gifts for his own children in the US.

He told one winner at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel: “My award is being here with you guys.”

The WellChild awards celebrate the inspiring qualities of some of the country’s seriously ill young people and the dedication of those who keep them healthy and happy, including health, social care and education professionals.

In a speech at Holyrood, the monarch said: “We are all, at the end of each day, united by our love of Scotland. Because of its natural beauty, of course, but also because of its strength of character, based as it is on the extraordinary diversity of its peoples, whose range of ideas, skills, energy, passions, and frequently deeply-held beliefs, never cease to inspire me.”

He then noted that his family’s love of the country runs so deep that the late Queen Elizabeth II chose to spend her final days in the country before passing away at their Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire.

Harry, 40, is expected to present an award at the prestigious event and deliver a brief speech, having been a patron of the charity since 2007.

The Duke of Sussex explained earlier this year that he will not bring Meghan Markle to the UK because he fears “an acid or knife attack” inspired by negative tabloid stories.

Harry, 40, has been engaged in a lengthy battle to have his taxpayer-funded security reinstated after it was removed when he stepped down as a working royal.

Speaking on ITV’s Tabloids on Trial, he said: “All it takes is one lone actor, one person who reads this stuff, to act on what they have read. And whether it’s a knife or acid, whatever it is.”

“They are genuine concerns for me,” he added. “They are one of the reasons I won’t bring my wife back to this country.”

Harry has returned to London today alone for the WellChild Awards.

Yvonne Macmillan, 59, from East Renfrewshire, asked the monarch about his health and offered a hug in light of his recent struggles.

She said: “I asked him if he was feeling better and if I could give him a hug. I actually said to him: ‘Can I hug you?’

“As I hugged him I said: ‘God bless you’, so it was like God giving him a hug.”

Ms Macmillan was attending the event in her capacity as a ‘local hero’ after setting up her Good Causes charity, which helps people in need.

Harry, 40, will be present in his capacity as patron for the charity, which celebrates the achievements of seriously ill children living in the UK and their caregivers.

The duke is expected to give a brief speech at the event and present an award.