'The King' pays a visit to Portsmouth's Queen Alexandra Hospital ahead of the coronation

King Charles III will be crowned on Saturday (6 May) and teams from Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust (PHU) are doing everything they can to make sure patients celebrate alongside the nation.

Actor Daniel McCrohon, from Groundlings Theatre in Portsmouth, dressed as King Charles yesterday (Thursday, May 5) and handed out chocolates, special pens and King’s Coronation resource packs with crosswords, posters and quizzes. He delighted patients young and old in the hospital’s children and older people’s wards.

Other celebrations at QA in Cosham include the wards decorated with bunting, flags and posters, free access to bedside TV on Saturday, cake competitions, colouring-in competitions for younger patients, entertainment for patients on D6 ward and a Coronation menu at the hospital’s B Level restaurant.

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Mark Roland, deputy medical director at Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust, said: ‘Our teams want to ensure that no one misses out on the King’s Coronation this weekend and even though patients are in hospital, we are going to do all we can to ensure they feel part of the nation’s celebrations and they get to enjoy the special day.’

Some of staff have also secured tickets from a ballot to attend the King’s Coronation including emergency department healthcare support worker Bev Hodges who has been allocated tickets for the NHS/military stand outside Buckingham Palace.

She said: ‘I was so surprised when I found out I had won the tickets, but really excited to be able to attend such a special occasion!’

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