Why Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie won't be spending Christmas with the royal family
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie will not be among the royals attending Christmas celebrations at the King's Sandringham estate next week.
The sisters were photographed walking to church on December 25 last year, following King Charles and Queen Camilla and the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children.
They were also present in 2022 for the first Christmas since King Charles ascended the throne.
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Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at Sandringham on Christmas morning in 2023. Samir Hussein/WireImage
But Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie will be noticeably absent on Wednesday.
They have chosen to spend Christmas with their husbands' families, a decision which is believed to have been made well before the latest scandal involving their father, Prince Andrew, came to light.
READ MORE: Prince Andrew pulls out of royal Christmas celebrations at Sandringham
The Duke of York has been linked to an alleged Chinese spy, named as Yang Tengbo who has been banned from the UK.
The association came to light in a UK court last week, which heard Tengbo was invited to the prince's birthday party in 2020 and was told he could act on the prince's behalf when dealing with potential investors in China.
Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank walk to church at Sandringham on Christmas morning in 2022. Samir Hussein/WireImage
It is not clear how Tengbo became close to Prince Andrew.
Prince Andrew will not join the King and Queen for the Christmas morning church service at Sandringham this year or lunch at the estate afterwards.
It is believed the duke withdrew from events at Christmas to avoid being a distraction.
Instead, Prince Andrew could spend Christmas at home with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, at the Royal Lodge.
Prince Andrew will not join the royals for Christmas at Sandringham this year following his links to an alleged Chinese spy. Getty
He is expected to attend a private Christmas lunch with the royal family at Buckingham Palace on Thursday but has been advised to avoid the cameras by going in a discreet side door.
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie spent Christmas at Sandringham in 2023, 2022 and in the years prior. In 2021 and 2020, the late Queen Elizabeth II moved the scaled-back celebrations to Windsor Castle due to COVID-19 pandemic.
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Princess Beatrice is expecting her second child with husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, who she married in 2020.
The baby will be born 11th in line to the British throne and is due anytime from March.
The Duchess of York, who joined the royals at Sandringham in 2023, will spend the day with Prince Andrew at Windsor. Joe Giddens/PA Images via Getty Images
The newborn will be a younger sibling for Sienna, three, and Christopher – known as Wolfie – Mozzi's eight-year-old son from his previous relationship.
Princess Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank have two sons: August, three, and Ernest, 18 months. They married in October, 2018.
This will be the first Christmas for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie spent with their in-laws.
Royal biographer Ingrid Seward says the Yorks will likely spend Christmas with Beatrice.
"Somehow or other, I think that Fergie and Andrew will be with Beatrice, Edo and the kids, either at Royal Lodge or the in-laws," she told The Telegraph UK.
"[Beatrice] is very close to her father and will want to support him and be with him at this time. I cannot possibly see Fergie sitting alone at Royal Lodge.
"She has lots of friends and family and would want to be with them. Andrew possibly wouldn't mind. He would sit there in front of the TV, but Sarah would organise something with Beatrice."
King Charles, pictured in 2023, will lead his family to church on December 25. Samir Hussein/WireImage
Christmas mass at St Mary Magdalene Church, on the Sandringham estate, is a big event in the royal calendar, bringing together the family for a public appearance, with crowds and photographers capturing the moment.
Since King Charles ascended the throne in September 2022, he has allowed Andrew to join the family on the traditional walk from Sandringham House to St Mary Magdalene church on Christmas Day.
In 2019, the duke was banned from taking part following his disastrous BBC Newsnight interview which prompted him to step back from public duties.
Last year the Duchess of York joined the King and Queen for the morning walk to church at Sandringham. It was the first time in 30 years that she was included in the royal family's celebrations on the Norfolk estate.
The Prince of Wales recently revealed that there would be 45 guests at their royal Christmas dinner, which now might be down to 43.
The 42-year-old said he would spend the day with his family "all in one room" but "normally spread out".
He said he hoped for a long walk including the dogs.
"Am I ready for Christmas?" he laughed. "No, no way am I ready."
The Prince and Princess of Wales, and their three children, will spend the festive season in Norfolk, staying at their home Anmer Hall on the Sandringham estate.
Queen Camilla's son Tom Parker Bowles told The Telegraph UK this week that he and his teenage children Lola and Freddy would be spending Christmas with the royal family at Sandringham for the first time.
He admitted Christmas this year "would be a bit different".
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