Britain’s ‘hottest young royal’ ran Southampton Marathon to fundraise for a mental health charity founded by a veteran who served with both Princes William and Harry.
Alexander Ogilvy, who is 60th in line to the throne and previously dubbed ‘Britain’s most eligible bachelor’, took part in the annual race on May 3 to raise funds for Head Up.
The charity, which seeks to provide vital mental health support to war veterans, was founded in 2021 by former Household Cavalry soldier Paul Minter, who served in the same regiment as Princes William and Harry during their time in the Armed Forces.
Paul, who joined the Blues and Royals at the age of 17 in 2003, served in D Squadron with the Prince of Wales and later in the same regiment as the Duke of Sussex.
In 2022, the former staff sergeant completed a 5,000-mile coastal run around the UK to raise £400,000 for the Head Up charity supporting veterans.
Now, Alexander, 29, who has been commissioned into the Blues and Royals, has openly pledged to support Paul’s charitable work by running Southampton’s Marathon to raise funds for his organisation.
Taking to Instagram to appeal for support from his followers, Alexander shared an image of him running with the caption: ‘Running the Southampton marathon today to raise money for Head Up.
‘They take soldiers on retreats to help them manage their mental health for life.’
Alexander Ogilvy (pictured), who is 60th in line to the throne and previously dubbed ‘Britain’s most eligible bachelor’, took part in Southampton Marathon on May 3 to raise funds for Head Up
Alexander, 29, who has been commissioned into the Blues and Royals, has openly pledged to support the charity, which seeks to provide vital support to war veterans and was founded by former Household Cavalry soldier Paul Minter
The young royal also shared a link to a fundraising page, asking for his followers to ‘consider sending a few £ their way’.
Alexander, who is grandson of Queen Elizabeth’s beloved cousin, Princess Alexandra, is reportedly single and has both model good looks and impressive academic credentials.
The dashing royal has signed up to the prestigious Household Cavalry and set hearts aflutter when he was pictured at his passing-out parade at the Berkshire school.
According to the Daily Mail’s Diary Editor Richard Eden, Alexander may ride in next year’s Trooping the Colour parade after graduating from the Royal Military Academy of Sandhurst last August.
He’s also got a sense of humour, as Mr Eden recalled Alexander’s quip when asked to pick three words that best described him.
‘Fraudulent, insecure, man,’ he jokingly replied. He later said one of his favourite hobbies outside work was ‘practicing a British accent’.
Born in Edinburgh in 1996, Alexander is the grandson of Queen Elizabeth’s cousin – Princess Alexandra, and the son of James Ogilvy and wife Julia.
Thus far, he has enjoyed a low-key life despite his royal status and prefers to stay out of the social media spotlight by keeping his Instagram account private.
Despite that, Alexander caused a stir on social media when videos of him arriving for the late Queen Elizabeth’s funeral in September 2022 went viral on TikTok.
Born in Edinburgh in 1996, Alexander is the grandson of Queen Elizabeth’s cousin – Princess Alexandra, and the son of James Ogilvy and wife Julia
Harry served two tours in Afghanistan where he acted as a Forward Air Controller from 2007 to 2008 and an Apache Pilot from 2012 to 2013. Meanwhile, his brother William served as an RAF Search and Rescue Pilot at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales, from 2010 to 2013
While the young royal still keeps a low profile online, his fundraising efforts for a charity close to Harry and William will no doubt be praised by members of the Firm, who often share a close tie to the Armed Forces.
Throughout his decade-long career in the army, Harry served two tours in Afghanistan where he acted as a Forward Air Controller from 2007 to 2008 and an Apache Pilot from 2012 to 2013.
Meanwhile, his brother William served as an RAF Search and Rescue Pilot at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales, from 2010 to 2013.
Both princes have been open about supporting mental health, and in 2016 launched the Heads Together campaign alongside Kate, now the Princess of Wales, to work towards ending the stigma surrounding mental health.
In 2019, the trio were joined by Meghan Markle to front Public Health England’s Every Mind Maters Campaign, which aimed to overhaul how Britons cope with mental health problems.
While the ‘Fab Four’ later went their separate ways, Harry went on to set up the Invictus Games, a tournament for wounded service personnel, which aims to rehabilitate injured soldiers by giving them fresh purpose.
In 2020, Harry spoke openly about the importance of mandatory mental health training in the British military, stressing that the move would help ‘protect and strengthen the potential and resilience’ of armed forces personnel.
‘There should be no difference between how we view our physical fitness and mental fitness and training both will help our service men and women excel, as well as being best prepared for what they may face, in any situation,’ he said.
Meanwhile, his brother, William, has candidly opened up about ‘understanding his emotions’ during a conversation with Professor Green on BBC Radio 1.
Looking inward on his own emotions, the senior royal candidly shared that it often takes him a while to work out exactly why he feels the way he does in certain situations.
‘I feel like that’s a really important process to do every now and again, to check in with yourself and work out why you’re feeling like you do,’ he told the BBC show.
‘Sometimes there’s an obvious explanation, sometimes there isn’t. I think that idea that mental health crisis is temporary – you can have a strong mental health crisis moment but it will pass.’
The Prince has also shared his support for families bereaved by suicide in the Armed Forces community, telling them: ‘Please know that you are not alone’.
