The Queen remained indoors Christmas morning at Windsor Castle while royals including Charles and Camilla, Edward and Sophie arrived at St George’s Chapel.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, the Earl and Countess of Wessex and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester have arrived for the Christmas Matins service in Windsor Castle.
Edward and Sophie were joined by Lady Louise (their daughter) and James, Viscount Severn (their son).. The royals were greeted at the entrance by the Dean of Windsor before moving inside for the morning service.
It is understood the Queen’s absence from the service is a personal choice and follows a precautionary approach seen over the last six months.
The service, which is ticketed, is attended by residents of the Windsor estate and members of the chapel congregation.
The monarch is expected to be joined at Windsor Castle by Charles and Camilla, having shelved her customary trip to Sandringham as a ‘precautionary’ measure amid rising coronavirus cases.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, the Earl and Countess of Wessex and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester have arrived for the Christmas Matins service in Windsor Castle
Sophie and Edward were accompanied by their daughter Lady Louise and son James, Viscount Severn. The royals were greeted at the entrance by the Dean of Windsor before moving inside for the morning service
It is understood the Queen’s absence from the service is a personal choice and follows a precautionary approach seen over the last six months
Meanwhile, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be spending the festive season in Norfolk, where they will be joined by some members of the Middleton family.
They will also be joined by their three children, George, eight, Charlotte, six, and Louis, three. It is believed they will all spend the holiday season at Anmer Hall, in William and Kate’s home on the Sandringham estate.
It is not known which members of Kate’s family will be staying with them.
The Cambridges have not celebrated Christmas with the Middletons since 2016, when William, Kate, George and Charlotte visited a church in Bucklebury.
And although they will not be with the Queen on Christmas Day, William and Kate will see her over the Christmas period, reports the Mirror.
It comes as the Queen is facing her first Christmas without her late husband Prince Philip in more than 73 years, following his death in April of this year.
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester arrive to attend the Christmas Day morning church service at St George’s Chapel
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester are met by the Dean of Windsor (centre) as they arrive to attend the Christmas Day morning church service
Tom Walker performed For Those Who Can’t Be Here alongside the Duchess of Cambridge in an event broadcast last night
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are also remaining stateside for the holidays, meaning the Queen will not yet meet her new granddaughter Lilibet.
The Queen will be joined on Christmas Day by Prince Charles and Camilla at Windsor Castle, in a boost for the monarch after Princess Anne had to drop out.
They are likely to be joined by Prince Andrew and his former wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, plus their two daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
The Earl and Countess of Wessex are also expected to be there, with their children, James, Viscount Severn, and Lady Louise – but Anne will not be attending.
Clarence House confirmed this morning that the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall would join the 95-year-old monarch at Windsor this Saturday.
The plans of Charles and Camilla had been unclear until yesterday – and they spent last Christmas at Highgrove, their country estate in Gloucestershire.
But a Clarence House spokesman confirmed today: ‘The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall will be with Her Majesty The Queen on Christmas Day.’
It comes after the Queen received a festive blow yesterday after her son-in-law Sir Timothy Laurence contracted Covid, meaning neither he nor Anne could join her.