Charles’ polo days were a blend of elegance and risk.
In 1990, at the age of 42, then-Prince Charles spent a week hospitalized following an elbow fracture during a polo match, which necessitated a three-hour surgical procedure. Nurse Gail Burbage fondly remembered his notably pleasant demeanor throughout his hospital stay.
Burbage expressed: “It was a privilege to care for him. He was friendly, conversational – the perfect patient. Although we had to adhere to specific protocols, he maintained a light-hearted atmosphere, making it easy for us.”
She further mentioned: “I went to the adjacent ward to get a menu. We devised a plan to order a meal for him under a fictitious name so that no one would recognize it was for the Prince. He dined using the plastic trays we had at the time, remarking that the meal was well-balanced.”
The nurse also noted that Charles took the opportunity to engage with the hospital staff, adding: “Once he was mobile, he would pause and converse with everyone – nurses, doctors, porters, cleaners – showing interest in how we functioned.”
Harry recounted another intense polo incident involving his ‘Pa’ Charles, writing: “As a child, I witnessed Pa take a severe fall, with the horse collapsing beneath him and the ground simultaneously hitting and enveloping him. I remember wondering: ‘Why’s Pa snoring?’ Followed by someone shouting, ‘He’s swallowed his tongue!'”
He concluded: “A quick-thinking player dismounted his horse and saved Pa’s life.”
