King Charles and Queen Camilla’s relationship has lasted for a very long time. It started when they were young, continued in scandalous fashion while he was married to Princess Diana, and then solidified itself after they married after Princess Diana’s tragic death. But this long history behind them doesn’t mean they are immune to the regular questions about the state of their relationship.

According to RadarOnline, those questions are exacerbated by things like the fact that the monarch and his wife keep separate bedrooms. According to the outlet, the couple keeps three bedrooms at their residence, one each and one to share. This follows a long royal tradition of separate bedrooms.

But the arrangement is said to be practical more than anything, and to help King Charles manage chronic discomfort due to old age and polo injuries he received in the past.

In his memoir, Spare, Prince Harry described his father doing headstands and physiotherapy for neck and back pain. “Prescribed by his physio, these exercises were the only effective remedy for the constant pain in Pa’s neck and back,” he wrote. He also added that the pain was due to “old polo injuries, mostly.”

A source told the outlet, “The king has long been aware that old injuries can catch up with him, so the sleeping setup is really about managing comfort and preserving rest. It is far more practical than symbolic – giving both of them the space Charles and Camilla need to recover properly and sleep without unnecessary strain.”

Sources insist it’s not a reflection on their marriage. “Charles and Camilla’s marriage is defined by closeness, not distance, and the bedroom arrangement is simply part of how they make life work. When someone has carried back pain for years, having the right sleeping space, the right support and the ability to rest without aggravating it can make a huge difference.”

King Charles played polo when he was young and sustained significant injuries. In 1990 he spent a week in hospital after breaking his elbow and required a three-hour operation. And from Harry’s description, he also had other very serious injuries. “As a boy, I’d seen Pa take (a hard) fall, the horse giving way, the ground simultaneously smacking and swallowing him. I remembered thinking: ‘Why’s Pa snoring?’ And then someone yelling, ‘He’s swallowed his tongue!'” he wrote.

“A quick-thinking player jumped from his horse and saved Pa’s life,” Harry added.

King Charles is also facing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer. He was diagnosed in February 2024, and in his last update he said he was doing better, though he wasn’t cured.

“Today I am able to share with you the good news that thanks to early diagnosis, effective intervention and adherence to ‘doctors’ orders,’ my own schedule of cancer treatment can be reduced in the New Year,” the King said during Channel 4’s Stand Up to Cancer broadcast on December 2025.

He added, “This milestone is both a personal blessing and a testimony to the remarkable advances that have been made in cancer care in recent years; testimony that I hope may give encouragement to the fifty percent of us who will be diagnosed with the illness at some point in our lives.