King Charles' 'tough' battle in cancer recovery despite 'inspiring others' as he celebrates 76th birthday

King Charles has had a challenging year, punctuated by personal health battles, worries for his family and grappling with not being able to work as hard as he has always done. But, if there is anything the last few weeks have proved, it is that there is a light at the end of the tunnel as he marks his 76th birthday on 14 November and begins to look ahead to a more joyful 2025.

It was on his recent tour of Australia and Samoa that we got a glimpse of the King back in action – he looked happy and confident, coming across as a modern monarch who is striving to make it clear that the future of any country lies solely in the hands of its people.

This easy approach is proving popular and will certainly be a driving force going into the next twelve months. Rather like in Robert Hardman’s newly updated book Charles III: New King. New Court. The Inside Story in which a close friend of the monarch says “being King is a suit that fits him well”, it is clear that Charles will do all he can to get back to work.

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Echoing the source in Robert’s book, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond exclusively tells OK!: “I think that neatly sums up where Charles is in his life right now.

"He is enjoying being King and was understandably annoyed to be stopped in his tracks by cancer. There is no indication when his treatment will end or what the final prognosis is, but it’s clear that Charles remains impatient to get on with the job of being monarch and is now getting back into his stride.”

Much like a racehorse at the starting gate, the King’s determination and drive to work has long been one of the hallmarks of his character. As he descends from a legacy of the hardest working royals – with his father, Prince Philip, not retiring until the age of 96 and the late Queen still working up until two days before her death – it is understandable where he gets it from, but Jennie makes it clear that health always comes first.

“He is a man with a keen sense of curiosity and I’m sure he will be hoping on his birthday that the visit to Australia and Samoa marked a turning point in his recovery and that he will indeed be carrying out almost a full diary of engagements in the coming year,” she says. “I think he has found it very tough to heed the advice of his doctors, along with his wife and his friends, to slow down a bit.”

Of course, easing his workload will become necessary going forward, with Jennie adding: “There is no getting away from the fact that we now have a fairly elderly King and Queen. Camilla’s recent chest infection is a reminder that neither of them is a spring chicken and they cannot be expected to go full pelt into the coming year. Charles will undoubtedly have much to reflect on as he celebrates his 76th birthday.

“He can be a very introspective man and some people feared that his cancer diagnosis would make him morose. But by all accounts he has been positive from the start, he has used his own illness to encourage other men to come forward for tests.

"I think he appreciates that suffering from cancer has made him somehow more relatable… and the mountains of letters and cards wishing him well have made him understand that he really does hold a place in the heart of many, many people.”

And looking ahead to the coming year, the King has a great deal to look forward to, including two major tours after his recent overseas visit proved to be “the perfect tonic”, as well as his and Queen Camilla’s 20th wedding anniversary on 9 April.

While King Charles simply wouldn’t be the man he is today without the steadfast example set by his late mother, the role his “darling wife” Camilla plays cannot be understated.

She is not only his spouse, but his sounding board and his best friend as Jennie says warmly, “I always think of them as a pair of old, comfy slippers - completely content in one another's company, and rather lost when one of them is absent.”