Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie have sent a pointed message to the Royal Family as they prepare for their parents, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah ‘Fergie’ Ferguson, to re-emerge at a significant family event in the coming week.
On Friday, Eugenie, 35, took to Instagram to announce that she and her older sister, 37, would not be attending Princess Catherine’s annual Christmas carols service- an event they usually support in person.
While no reason was given for their absence, the decision comes amid the ongoing fallout from their parents’ fall from grace following their ties to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, revealed through a string of resurfaced emails and the posthumous memoir of prominent accuser Virginia Giuffre.
In October, Andrew and Fergie were stripped of their royal titles and served an eviction notice for their home at Royal Lodge by King Charles III.
“Wish Bea and I could have been celebrating tonight with our family,” Eugenie wrote on her Instagram Stories next to a picture of the event program.
“Wishing @princeandprincessofwales such a special evening at her incredible carol service. What an amazing message of love and hope.”
It is understood Eugenie was speaking on behalf of both herself and Beatrice, who does not use social media.
Both sisters had reportedly received personal invitations from Princess Catherine and have been regular attendees at the ‘Together at Christmas’ service in previous years.
Eugenie attended in 2021, 2022 and 2023, sometimes alongside her husband Jack Brooksbank, while Beatrice and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi have been present annually since the event launched in 2021.
The couple even brought Mozzi’s son, Christopher Woolf, in 2023 and 2024.
Despite skipping Catherine’s event, the sisters are expected to reunite with the wider Royal Family this Friday for the christening of Beatrice’s daughter, Athena Rose Mapelli Mozzi, at the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace.
Athena, who was born several weeks prematurely on January 29, is Beatrice and Edo’s second child, after four-year-old Sienna Elizabeth.
According to the Mail on Sunday, Beatrice’s parents have been invited to the christening, marking what will be their first public appearance since being shunned from royal life.
“It’s going to be a royal occasion but everyone is dreading the thought of seeing Andrew there,” a source told the outlet.
Beatrice is said to have remained close to her mother throughout the Epstein scandal, while her relationship with her father is believed to be more strained.
“Beatrice has, of course, invited her father. But things are not warm between them. However, she’s worried about him. He’s going through a low ebb with his mental health and she recognises that he dotes on his grandchildren and it would be cruel to deprive him of the chance to attend the christening.”
The source added that Beatrice likely held “careful conversations and diplomacy” with her uncle, King Charles, to “get to this stage”.
The King was reportedly invited to Athena’s christening but is not expected to attend, despite having no official engagements listed for the day.
The Prince and Princess of Wales are also believed to be skipping the event, while several European royals are expected to attend, including Athena’s godmother, Princess Nina of Greece and Denmark.
According to the outlet, Beatrice is “determined” to keep the focus “entirely on her daughter”, after Athena’s baptism was delayed amid the family’s very public fallout.
Notably, Beatrice’s eldest daughter Sienna, was baptised within six months of her birth in 2022.
Following Athena’s christening, it remains unclear how the York sisters will spend Christmas; however, both are understood to have been invited to Sandringham with the rest of the Royal Family.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.skynews.com.au ’
