Royals' Christmas Chaos: Now Kate Middleton and Prince William Pull Out of Cancer-Hit King Charles' Pre-Festive Lunch After Duke and Duchess of York are 'Blacklisted' From Party
Four members of the Royal family declined to attend King Charles' Buckingham Palace Christmas lunch.
Dec. 19 2024, Published 2:30 p.m. ET
The royal family's traditional Christmas plans have gone up in smoke.
RadarOnline.com can reveal Prince William and Kate Middleton have pulled out of attending King Charles' Christmas lunch as Prince Andrew and ex-wife Sarah Ferguson were said to be "blacklisted" from festivities over the Duke of York's Chinese spy scandal.
While the extended royal family will gather at Buckingham Palace on December 19 for the annual Christmas luncheon, the king and queen-in-waiting will not be in attendance.
William and Kate opted out of Charles' lunch at Buckingham Palace with extended family.
Instead of meeting with family at Buckingham Palace, William, 42, and Kate, also 42, will spend quality time with their loved ones at Sandringham Estate in Norfolk over Christmas.
William and Kate have already packed up their three children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – and headed to Norfolk.
The Prince and Princess of Wales were not the only ones notably absent from the Buckingham Palace festivities.
William and Kate have already headed to Sandringham in Norfolk with their three children.
Andrew, 64, also dodged the event as the royal family are still reeling from his latest scandal.
As RadarOnline.com reported, insiders said Charles' patience with his brother was "wearing thin".
The source said: "He has stood by Andrew for many years, but everyone has their limits. I can't see the King wanting to walk to church with someone who was friends with a Chinese spy.
"The palace has behaved the best it possibly can with a difficult relation. Every sanction that can be imposed has been, but you can't divorce or sack your brother from being your brother.
"There will always be a bond of blood, and all families often have difficult relatives to deal with. Of course, it is understood that it looks bad for the entire family, but that is because of one individual."
Prince Andrew also declined to attend the Buckingham Palace lunch amid scrutiny from his Chinese spy scandal.
Now, a separate royal insider claimed Charles and Queen Camilla are hoping Andrew's ex-wife will convince him to "completely withdraw from royal life".
On the upcoming celebrations at Sandringham, royal editor Ingrid Seward said: "Andrew should take it on himself and decline both invites. It would be the gentlemanly thing to do so he isn’t embarrassing the King.
"But Andrew is pretty thick-skinned and maybe we have to rely on the influence of Fergie."
Andrew's ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, will also stay away from the celebration on Christmas day.
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Another source said it's likely Charles will continue to distance himself from Andrew to preserve The Firm's reputation.
The insider said: "The palace has behaved the best it possibly can with a difficult relation.
"Every sanction that can be imposed has been, but you can’t divorce or sack your brother from being your brother.
"There will always be a bond of blood, and all families often have difficult relatives to deal with. Of course, it is understood that it looks bad for the entire family, but that is because of one individual."
