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Members of the Norwegian Royal Family were photographed outside the Oslo hospital where the monarch is being treated

Concerns for Norway's King Harald, 89, are mounting after the Royal Court this morning declared the monarch's health to be "very serious."

Crown Prince Haakon and Queen Sonja have both scrapped all planned official duties in response to the alarming update.

The announcement marks a sharp downturn from just days ago, when the Royal Court indicated that Europe's longest-serving monarch was in a stable condition and had "responded to treatment" for a bacterial infection in his bloodstream.

Both of King Harald's children, Crown Prince Haakon, who has been acting as Regent during his father's absence, and former princess Martha Louise, 54, are reported to have hurried to Oslo University Hospital to be at his side.

The 89-year-old was first taken into hospital on 17 August and given two weeks' sick leave.

At the time, the palace explained that he had been undergoing cortisone treatment for haemolytic anaemia, a blood disorder in which red blood cells are broken down at an abnormally rapid rate, causing fatigue, pallor and difficulty breathing.

That cortisone treatment had resulted in a build-up of fluid in his body, necessitating hospital care.

By Sunday, the situation had worsened considerably. The palace confirmed that the King's condition had "deteriorated over the weekend" following the onset of a bacterial infection in his blood.

Members of the Norwegian Royal Family were photographed outside the Oslo hospital where he remains admitted throughout this week.

The King's hospitalisation has coincided with an especially trying period for Martha Louise, whose husband Durek Verrett recently had a successful kidney transplant at what is understood to be the same hospital.

The American shaman had been dependent on dialysis several times per week "just to stay alive" before the operation.

In a joint statement, the couple expressed their overwhelming gratitude to the donor. "It is difficult to put into words what such a gift means," they said.

"The new kidney has given Durek a second chance, and that is something we will never take for granted."

Martha Louise and Durek described themselves as "incredibly relieved and deeply grateful."

With Verrett now in recovery, attention at Oslo University Hospital has shifted firmly to the King's bedside.

King Harald has faced repeated health scares throughout 2026. Earlier this month, he attended hospital for what was described as a planned medical check-up.

In February, he was rushed to Hospital Universitario Hospiten Sur in Tenerife while holidaying with Queen Sonja, 89, and treated for an infection and dehydration; his condition then was deemed "satisfactory."

Two years prior, a similar episode struck during a trip to Malaysia, ultimately leading to the fitting of a pacemaker.

Despite his recurring health difficulties, the monarch has consistently ruled out stepping down from the throne, which he ascended in 1991.

"I stick by what I've always said, that I swore an oath to the Storting (Norwegian Parliament) and it is for life," he has previously stated.