Prince William pauses, looks away, and speaks in a choked voice as he describes the devastating impact of his suicide with his widow.
In a moving new film, the Prince of Wales speaks to Leanne Manning, who lost her husband Paul in 2012 – just five days after their one-year-old son George died – as they sit together in their kitchen.
The eight-minute video, released on World Mental Health Day on October 10, features Prince William’s emotional visit with Leanne, who has set up a charity to support families grieving the loss of a child.
Over tea and Welsh cake, the conversation turns to her surviving children, Holly and Isaac. William then gently asks Paul what he should say. “I want to sit him down like this and just say, ‘Why didn’t you come to me?’ Because he’s missing out on so much joy, and we would have been okay. And I think that’s the hardest thing – we would have been okay.”
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William then looked away, rubbed his chin, and blushed as he took in what Leanne had shared. “Are you okay?” she asks.
The prince reached across the kitchen table, touched her hand, and replied, “I’m sorry. It’s just…it’s hard for me to ask these questions…”
“No, it’s okay,” Leanne gently interjected, “It’s just… you have a child,” before adding, “It’s hard… and you’ve experienced loss yourself.”
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“It’s okay,” I said, and Leanne added, “I’m fine.” “Sometimes life throws you some really bad curveballs, but talking about it and having hope keeps you going.”
The Prince replied: “The best way to prevent suicide is to talk about it. Talk about it early, talk to your loved ones, talk to people you trust, talk to your friends. So thank you for talking about it.”
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The Royal Foundation, led by Prince William and Duchess Kate, has donated around $1.3 million (£1 million) over the first three years to support the establishment of the National Suicide Prevention Network.
The network brings together charities across the UK to improve understanding of suicide and how to prevent it. Four leading charities from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are founding partners alongside Hub of Hope, the UK’s largest mental health support directory.
The prince has long worked to raise awareness about men’s mental health and suicide, drawing on his own experience of witnessing the issue first hand while working as an air ambulance pilot.
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In September, William supported a Welsh charity set up in memory of the young man. The Jack Lewis Foundation, set up in memory of Jack, who died by suicide in 2019, recently launched a mental health hub in partnership with the Welsh Rugby Union, which is backed by the prince. He also supports James’ Place, an organization that provides support to men facing suicidal crises.
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William reflects in the film: “There are so many unanswered questions that will live on forever from the families that have had to endure the suicides I’ve talked about, right?”
Leanne, who runs her own charity work to support grieving families, added: “I will forever remember those few days with him and think about what I missed. Before we lost George, we were so happy and I think this shows that it really can happen to anyone.”
The new network, supported by the Royal Foundation, will be chaired by Professor Anne John, a leading expert on suicide and self-harm prevention and a consultant in public health medicine in Wales. The initiative will focus on understanding and addressing the root causes of suicide, making support available to everyone and fostering greater collaboration, innovation and action across the UK.
