The Duke of Sussex made a surprise call to congratulate members of a walking expedition which set out from Powys.

The ex-service personnel on the Grenadier Walk of Oman trek, organised by Walking with the Wounded, were due to cross the Omani desert until their plan was set back by the coronavirus pandemic.

Instead, the team of six former soldiers walked 300km in stages across the UK, starting at Pen Y Fan in the Brecon Beacons and finishing at the Anglo Omani Society in central London on Thursday.

Harry, who is patron of Walking with the Wounded, rang the team as they neared the finish line.

He told them to “lean on” the experience of the walk when they feel “a little bit dark” in future.

“Guys just remember, you have got to hold on to this moment, you have got to hold on to this feeling,” he said.

“Because it doesn’t matter where you walk, or what you are doing. When inevitably we all end up feeling down, a little bit dark, in the weeks, months and years to come, you will remember back to this. Lean on this experience to pick yourselves up.”