Britain’s favourite royal who has overtaken Prince William by a narrow margin revealed

Britain’s favourite royal who has overtaken Prince William by a hair’s breadth

Exclusive: Princess of Wales, 41, is now Britain’s favourite royal, according to the Savanta poll

The Princess of Wales has overtaken Prince William in a new poll to be crowned Britain’s favourite royal, the Independent can reveal.

Kate, 42, who is currently undergoing treatment for an unspecified form of cancer, was seen as “favourable” by 62 percent of respondents to the Savanta research, which is exclusive to this publication.

This meant she beat the Prince of Wales, 41, by a hair’s breadth, as he had a favourability ranking of 61 percent.

Kate was also seen in a “strongly favourable” light by 36 percent of respondents compared to the future king’s 34 percent.

Prince Andrew, 64, following his association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, was voted the UK’s least-favourite royal in the poll – with just 14 percent of respondents seeing him in a favourable light.

Only five percent saw the Duke of York as “strongly favourable” after the scandal.

Other notable findings from the poll were the lack of popularity faced by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Harry, 39, was seen as favourable by just 29 percent of respondents while his wife, Meghan, 42, was marginally less popular with just 25 percent of respondents seeing her in a positive light.

A mere nine percent of respondents put them in the “strongly favourable” category.

Chris Hopkins Political Research Director at Savanta said: “Despite a clearly turbulent year for the royal family, they remain as popular as ever with the public. The Princess of Wales in particular enjoys a level of support that any politician would be jealous of.”

“The King returns to royal duties this week knowing his standing with the public continues to remain high.”

The news comes after a difficult start to the year for the royal family, who saw Kate hospitalised in January for planned abdominal surgery and King Charles hospitalised for a routine procedure to treat an enlarged prostate.

It then emerged that the pair, who are two of the most senior royals, had cancer.

This meant that until King Charles’s return to work this week, there were just nine working royals left, the majority of whom were elderly and known.

Kate, who most recently announced her diagnosis in March, remains off public duty as she undergoes “preventative” chemotherapy.

Prince William provided a hopeful update on her progress this week, telling a royal well-wisher that his wife and children are “doing well”.

He made the revelation during a visit to Newcastle to open a new suicide prevention centre, St James’ Place.

It offers free help for suicidal men and it is hoped that William’s endorsement will encourage more people to use the service.

Dean Stewart, 31, from Gateshead, who has himself struggled with this mental health, praised the Prince for visiting.

He said: “The Prince of Wales coming up means a lot more men will come through the doors rather than doing themselves harm.”

It is believed that Kate will not return to duty until her medical team deem it safe to do so.