Princess Eugenie told to ‘expect the worst’ after close family member hospitalised with COVID-19

prince eugenie father in law george brooksbank coronavirus
(Image credit: Getty)

Princess Eugenie and her family were told to “expect the worst” after her father-in-law was hospitalised.

Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank were told to “expect the worst” after Jack’s father George Brooksbank was admitted to hospital with COVID-19.

The royal’s father-in-law was struck down by the illness around the middle of March following a trip to France and was subsequently put on a ventilator for five weeks.

But the retired chartered accountant has thankfully now recovered from the difficult illness, speaking about his experience and thanking the NHS for saving his life.

prince eugenie father in law george brooksbank coronavirus

“The point I really want to get across is that I think the NHS is absolutely magnificent,” said Mr Brooksbank.

“The way I was treated was incredible. Nothing was too much trouble and at no point did I get a sense of a shortage of doctors or nurses or any impression that the service was in any way overwhelmed,” continued George, who lives in south London with wife Nicola.

“There was always somebody at hand. I want to offer profound thanks to everyone who was involved. It was a real eye-opener for somebody who has not been in hospital before for any length of time.

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“I certainly owe them my life.”

“I’m walking around at the moment on one stick and I hope to get free of that next week,” he continued.

“My breathing is back to normal and I count myself extremely lucky. My thoughts now are with those still battling this disease and the NHS staff risking their own lives to help them.”

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“Without doubt, they saved him, and we could not be more grateful,” added wife Nicola, who also contracted the virus but is recovering safely at home without treatment.

“We were not able to see him throughout his treatment and more than once we were told to expect the worst.”

Aleesha Badkar
Digital Beauty Editor, woman&home

Aleesha is Digital Beauty Editor at woman&home, where she gets to share her expertise into all the best techniques, sharpest tools and newest products—with a particular savvy in skincare and fragrance.

Previously, she was Deputy Editor and Beauty & Fashion Editor for My Imperfect Life, where she headed up the beauty, fashion and eCommerce pages. In the past, she has worked as Shopping Writer at woman&home, gained an AOP awards nomination after working on their news team, contributed to Women's Health, Stylist and Goodto and earned an MA in Magazine Journalism from City, University of London.