Prince William Surprise Called a 5-Year-Old Boy With Cystic Fibrosis in Quarantine

Prince William made a surprise video call to a 5-year-old boy with cystic fibrosis and his mom, as both quarantine at home amid the coronavirus pandemic.

swansea, united kingdom february 04 prince william, duke of cambridge arrives at the rnli lifeboat station on mumbles pier on february 4, 2020 in swansea, wales photo by polly thomasgetty images
(Image credit: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS)
  • Prince William surprise-called a 5-year-old boy with cystic fibrosis and his mom, as both quarantine at home amid the coronavirus pandemic.
  • William surprised Kaydyn and mom Leanne, in footage to be broadcast on Tuesday's The One Show in the U.K.
  • He spoke to the family about the struggles of "shielding" at home as the pandemic continues.

Prince William made a surprise video call to a 5-year-old boy with cystic fibrosis and his mom, to speak about the challenges faced by those acutely vulnerable to coronavirus as some lockdown measures begin to ease. The Duke of Cambridge's call with Kaydyn and his mom, Leanne, which was conducted a few weeks ago, will be broadcast on U.K. talk show The One Show on Tuesday evening, as People reports.

Because coronavirus poses a serious risk to Kaydyn, he and Leanne have been "shielding" at home in Corby, Northamptonshire, throughout the pandemic, and will continue to do so even as quarantine restrictions begin to lift. "Is it even more hard and frustrating for you guys bearing in mind the lockdown is starting to ease a little bit?" William asked.

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Leanne responded, "Yeah, and of course Kaydyn heard that on the news and he was like, 'Oh, can we go out now?' And I was like, 'No, we can’t,' so he’s now like, 'Why can everyone else go out and I can’t?'” She explained Kaydyn, despite his initial frustration about being stuck indoors, developed a fear of leaving the house—but the family have since been able to go on two walks in the country.

"A lot of people will start to go back to work a lot more, and we need to keep the focus on you guys who are going to be shielding and finding that very, very difficult," William said.

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(Image credit: The Royal Family)
Emily Dixon
Morning Editor

Emily Dixon is a British journalist who’s contributed to CNN, Teen Vogue, Time, Glamour, The Guardian, Wonderland, The Big Roundtable, Bust, and more, on everything from mental health to fashion to political activism to feminist zine collectives. She’s also a committed Beyoncé, Kacey Musgraves, and Tracee Ellis Ross fan, an enthusiastic but terrible ballet dancer, and a proud Geordie lass.