April 5, 2026
Who’s In and Who’s Out at Royal Easter as Beatrice and Eugenie Stay Away
King Charles and Queen Camilla will attend Easter Matins at St George’s Chapel, but much of the interest this year is focused less on the service itself and more on who will — and will not — be there.
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie are reportedly set to miss the gathering, with sources suggesting the decision says more about power inside the family than holiday scheduling. We break down who is expected to attend, why William is said to be “tightening the circle,” and what this year’s Easter lineup may reveal about the monarchy’s evolving shape.
Plus: Beatrice and Edoardo are reportedly considering a move abroad, Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling announce their wedding date, and a royal expert says the rift between King Charles and Andrew may now be beyond repair.
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Ah Calorougus Shark Media. Hello and welcome to your palace Intrigue.
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I am your host, Mark Francis, King Charles and Queen
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Camilla will attend the Easter Matins service at Saint George's Chapel.
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That is one of the more traditional fixtures on the
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royal calendar, and it usually serves as a fairly visible
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family gathering, even if it is not as grand as
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Christmas at Sandringham or Trooping the color. The setting matters too.
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Saint George's Chapel is not just another royal church appearance.
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It is one of the spiritual and symbolic centers of
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the monarchy, and a lot of family history is wrapped
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up in that place. What will be watched most closely
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this year is not really the service itself, but who
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turns up Eastern can sometimes offer a useful snapshot of
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where relationships stand inside the family, particularly when there has
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been speculation around attendance, absences, or who is being quietly
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folded back into public view. Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie
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will not attend, with the sisters said to have made
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alternative plans for the holiday. One source tells Rob shooter's
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naughty but nice. This wasn't optional, it was decided for them.
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William is tightening the circle. Another source said, and this
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is what that looks like. He's thinking about the future,
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not feelings. It's about protecting the brand. These things don't
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just happen once. Once you're out, it's easier to stay out.
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Another source framed for the situation more bluntly, saying this
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wasn't about Easter, it was about control. According to one
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insider account, nothing moves without the king, but William made
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it very clear what he wanted. He's thinking like a CEO.
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Who's on the stage matters, who's not matters more. Another
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insider claimed William controls the future of the royal family, him,
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Catherine and their three children. That's the monarchy people show
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up for. One of the more striking claims is that
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pressure may have been applied behind the scenes, with a
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source alleging the message was simple, if certain people are there,
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we won't be. As one insider put it, the crown
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is still child, but the power that's shifting fast. The
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Daily Mail provided a chart for you to follow along
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with who is coming and who is not. According to
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the chart, William and Catherine are expected to return this
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year after missing the service previously. Also in that main
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group are the king's siblings and working royals, including Princess Anne,
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Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, Edward and Sophie, along with
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their children Lady Louise Windsor and Jeames moving into the
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extended family. Several familiar faces are also expected to attend.
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That includes Zara and make Tyndall, Peter Phillipson other close
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cousins who regularly appear at major family gatherings like Easter
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and Christmas. At the bottom of the chart, the Sussexes
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Prince Haran Megan Markel are not expected to attend, continuing
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their absence from these traditional royal gatherings since stepping back
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from duties in twenty twenty one. Should also not expect
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Andrew to be seen. Beatrice and Eduardo are said to
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be considering a move abroad as pressure continues to build
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around the York family. The report suggests the couple could
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potentially leave their home in the Cotswold for the United States,
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where EDWARDO already has business ties and a residence in
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New York, whereal commentated Tom Sykes observes. The report said
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the feeling was that staying in Britain would leave them
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as sitting ducks while the York families problems continue to
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generate headlines, and that moving abroad could help give the
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marriage a boost and get it back on track. He
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also added the male is too polite to mention that
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such a move would have the effect of making it
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impossible for their parents to ever visit them, given the
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desire of Congress to see them testify. Peter Phillips and
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Harriet Sperling have announced they will marry this summer in
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a private ceremony. The wedding is said to take place
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on Saturday June sixth at All Saints Church in Campbell,
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near Cirencester. A statement said Mister Peter Phillips, the son
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of hr H the Princess Royal and Captain Mark Phillips,
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and Miss Harriet Spurling, daughter of the late Mister Rupert
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Sanders and Miss Mary Sanders, of Gloucestershire, have today announced
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their wedding date. The summer wedding will take place at
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All Saints Church, Kempbell on Saturday six Due twenty twenty six,
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in a private ceremony. The King and Queen and other
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senior members of the royal family have reportedly been informed
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of the date, with more details expected in due course.
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It will be Peter's second marriage. He and Harriet, a
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NHS pediatric nurse, have been together since twenty twenty four,
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with their relationship first becoming public at the Badminton Horse Trials,
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before Harriet later joined members of the royal family at
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Royal Ascot. The guest list has not been confirmed, but
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royal attendees have expected to include Princess Anzara at make
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Tenderlan likely a number of other family members. More Palace
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in just a moment, Hey, check out our new podcast,
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Palace Intrigue Presents King William. Here's what you need to know.
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It's our speculative fiction series imagining what happens when William
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ascends to the throne, and season two is out right now.
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This season, the monarchy faces its biggest threat yet when
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a bombshell memoir announcement out of California forces King William
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and Queen ca Katherine to make a decision no Royal
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family has ever faced. Does the Queen start a podcast
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to fight back? All ten episodes of season two are
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available right now to Binge completely ad free on Apple podcasts.
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If you are a subscriber and regular episodes are dropping daily,
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just have the banner that says uninterrupted listening and Dive
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in Palace Intrigue Presents King William Season two is available
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now wherever you get your podcasts. Relations between King Charles
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and his brother Andrew Windsor are being described as deeply fractured,
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with one royal expert suggesting the rift may be beyond repair.
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Royal biographer Andrew Lowney said, I don't think we'll see
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Andrew at charles funeral. Andrew resented Charles, he felt that
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he could do a better job. Charles resented Andrew. He
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felt that Andrew was allowed to do things he couldn't do. Conversely,
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new claims suggest Andrew has been left frustrated by his
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inability to manage media coverage in the same way Charles does.
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A senior media insider said within broadcasting circles, there has
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long been an awareness of how tightly controlled access to
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King Charles could be, but seeing the detail laid out
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again has reignited debate. It underscores just how far those
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arrangements went compared to what most public figures would request
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for Andrew Windsor. There was a sense of frustration and
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rage that he never had access to that same level
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of structured media management. The contrast between the two brothers
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has become more apparent, particularly as scrutiny around Andrew has
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intensified without the same protective framework in place. A journalist
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familiar with Royal media negotiations described the approach as unusual,
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saying the requirement for questions to be submitted and approved
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in advance and the level of involvement in editing went
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well beyond standard practice. It effectively shifted the balance of
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power in the interview process, raising questions about how independent
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those exchanges could truly be. Under the reported arrangements, interviewers
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were limited to pre approved questions, with Royal representatives able
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to intervene during filming and request changes in editing. Broadcasters
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who did not comply a risk losing the right to
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air the footage. Critics argue that such measures blow the
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line between journalism and public relations. One former editor said,
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when a subject has influence over both the questions and
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the final edit, it fundamentally alters the nature of the exchange.
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It becomes less about scrutiny and more about message management,
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which inevitably raises concerns about transparency and editorial independence. However,
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Clarence House has defended the practice, maintaining that such agreements
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are standard. A spokesperson said, the issuing of broadcast contracts
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is standard practice across the Royal households. All broadcasters who
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enter into them are keen to ensure that they do
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not breach any of the relevant broadcast rules and go
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to great lengths to protect their independence. In this regard,
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the contracts are put in place to ensure factual accuracy
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and protect the broadcaster as well as the interview subject.
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And there you have it. Colect to email us who
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addresses the Palace Entry at gmail and dog com. Please
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follow us on Spotify, Apple or the app of your choice.
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I Mark Francis my thanks to John McDermott. This is
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Palus intrigue. Good terms,
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