The Duchess of Cornwall’s son Tom Parker Bowles is mourning the death of his girlfriend Alice Procope. The former journalist, who was diagnosed with cancer in August, died “peacefully” at home on March 17, according to the Daily Mail. She was 42. A friend of Prince Charles’ stepson said, “Tom had been blissfully happy with Alice and is devastated that life can be so cruel.”

©Getty Images

In a statement via the Evening Standard, Alice’s family said, “She was much loved and will be greatly missed. She is in heaven now, cheering us all on.”

The Daily Mail reported that “partly because of Covid,” Alice’s cancer diagnosis did not come until last August “by when it was too late.”

Tom’s late girlfriend was the granddaughter of the 2nd Viscount Ingleby and a mother of three—Katherine, Wilfred and Georgia, whom she shared with her estranged husband, Robert Procope.

©WireImage

Prince William and Prince Harry’s stepbrother reportedly dated Alice for nearly two years following his split from his wife Sara Buys in 2018. Tom and Sara, who wed in 2005, are parents to daughter Lola and son Freddy.

Tom is the eldest of Camilla and her ex-husband Andrew Parker Bowles’ children. The Duchess of Cornwall’s son has spoken about his stepfather Prince Charles in the past calling him a “lovely man.” In 2015, he told A Current Affair (via HELLO!), “All you care about your parents is they‘re happy and my mother is exceptionally happy at the moment. I’ve always adored my stepfather; he’s always been a kind and good and lovely man.”

Tom added, “He is a man of warmth, intelligence and humanity and I think if it ever happens, he will make a fantastic King.”