Prince George's heartbreak as beloved annual Boxing Day hunt is axed

Prince George is set to miss out on an annual royal Christmas tradition.

Each year on December 26, male members of the royal family head out for the annual Boxing Day Hunt — which sees them shoot pheasants and grouse.

Prince William is known to love this annual ritual and was expected to bring his eldest son Prince George, eight, along with him, however it appears the hunt may be cancelled due to the cold temperature.

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According to The Sun, the shoot — which is also called Balmoral's Glorious Twelfth — may not go ahead as the colder than usual climate has contributed to fewer animal births.

In 2018, there was speculation Prince Harry would snub the Boxing Day hunt after rumours swirled his wife Meghan Markle would not approve.

However, reports later claimed the Duke of Sussex did indeed attend the shoot.

"There were never any questions that he wouldn't participate in that," a source told Us Weekly at the time.

The insider also said Meghan accompanied her sister-in-law, Kate Middleton, to the post-shoot lunch at the log cabin on the royal family's estate.

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The hunt is not the only Christmas tradition that is in jeopardy this year, after the Queen was forced to axe her usual pre-Christmas lunch due to the major COVID-19 spike in the UK.

Speaking on the Today Show, Daily Mirror royal editor Russell Myers spoke on how the Queen's Christmas plans are hanging in the balance.

Myers says the monarch's recent decision to cancel the usual pre-Christmas lunch held at Buckingham Palace was sensible, but now claims she may also be forced to cancel Christmas Day, too.

"The rates of COVID-19 are surging by the hour in the UK, so I think it was a sensible decision," Myers says. "The Queen was always going to consult her family to see whether they indeed wanted this party to go ahead."