Easter Sunday is March 31, nine days from now. There’s some sort of informal countdown happening in the royalist press, where all hell will break loose if the Princess of Wales doesn’t show up to the Windsor church-walk on Easter. The media is basically demanding it, and Kensington Palace is trying to promise to comply, with palace sources swearing that Wiglet Christ Superstar will absolutely be resurrected in time for church. Of course, some royal sources are insisting that the timeline was always “after Easter,” meaning after the Wales kids’ school break, which ends on April 17th. Speaking of, today is the start of the Wales kids’ school holiday and according to Hello, the family will decamp to their Norfolk home for the next month.
The Prince and Princess of Wales are gearing up for some quality family time together as their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis break up for the school holidays on Friday. George, ten, Charlotte, eight, and five-year-old Louis, who attend Lambrook School in Berkshire, have almost one month off and aren’t due back into the classroom until 17 April.
The Wales family usually spend the children’s holidays at their second home, the ten-bedroom Anmer Hall on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, so it’s likely the royals will decamp there in the coming days.
They may choose, however, to first attend the Easter church service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle with the rest of the royal family before travelling to Norfolk.
William and Kate usually attend the service with other senior royals, including King Charles and Camilla, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and their children Lady Louise Windsor and James, Earl of Wessex, Princess Anne, Zara and Mike Tindall, and more. Prince Louis made his debut last year, holding on to Kate’s hand as he arrived at the chapel, while George and Charlotte joined the royal family for their first public Easter outing in 2022.
Just a reminder, the official palace cover story for the Mother’s Day frankenphoto was that Prince William returned to Adelaide Cottage, shot the photo in 30 minutes and then the family left Windsor for Norfolk for the weekend. My point is that according to official palace sources, Will and Kate have kept up their “weekends in Norfolk” habit for a good month or so. Of course, I always halfway believed that Kate never left Norfolk – I think she’s spent most of 2024 at Anmer Hall, which has more space for nurses and medical equipment. Anyway, it will be a big deal if Kate turns up for church on Easter, and it will be a massive deal if she skips and we don’t see her until late April. Like, the British media won’t be able to contain or control the story anymore and they won’t be able to tamp down all of the speculation.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Kensington Palace, Backgird, Cover Images.
- Copyright in the photograph is vested in The Prince and Princess of Wales. Publications are asked to credit the photograph to Josh Shinner. The photograph shall be solely used for news editorial purposes only. It shall not be approved for souvenirs, or memorabilia; or anything colourably similar. There shall be no commercial use whatsoever of the photograph (including by way of example only) any use in merchandising, advertising or any other non news editorial use. The photograph must not be digitally enhanced, manipulated or modified in any manner or form and must include all of the individuals in the photograph when published. The photograph shall not be used after 31st December 2024 without prior permission from Kensington Palace. Any questions relating to the use of the photograph should be first referred to Kensington Palace and before publication. Undated handout photo issued by Kensington Palace of the Prince and Princess of Wales with their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. The photograph, which features on their Royal Highnesses’ Christmas card this year, was taken by the photographer Josh Shinner earlier this year and shows The Prince and Princess with their three children in Windsor. NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.,Image: 828291451, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Josh Shinner/Kensington Palace / Avalon
- Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince Louis attend Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene church, Sandringham, United Kingdom, on 25 December 2023.,Image: 832317072, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Arthur Edwards / Avalon
- Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince George and Prince Louis attend Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene church, Sandringham, United Kingdom, on 25 December 2023.,Image: 832317075, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Arthur Edwards / Avalon
- Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales visit tributes left at Sandringham Featuring: Catherine, Princess of Wales, Kate, Prince William, Prince of Wales Where: Sandringham, Norfolk, United Kingdom When: 15 Sep 2022 Credit: Cover Images
- The Prince and Princess of Wales view floral tributes left by members of the public at the gates of Sandringham House in Norfolk, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Featuring: Prince William and Catherine Princess of Wales Where: Sandringham, England, United Kingdom When: 15 Sep 2022 Credit: PA Images/ Images **North America Rights Only**
- Royals Attend ‘Together at Christmas’ Carol Service at Westminster Abbey in London. Featuring: Catherine Princess of Wales Where: London, England, United Kingdom When: 15 Dec 2022 Credit: PA Images/ Images **North America Rights Only**
- Royal Carols – Together At Christmas service at Westminster Abbey. Featuring: Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Catherine, Princess of Wales Where: London, United Kingdom When: 08 Dec 2023 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
- Members of the British Royal Family attend the Christmas Day service at Sandringham Featuring: Catherine Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte, Prince George, Prince William, Prince Louis, Mia Tindall Where: Sandringham, Norfolk, United Kingdom When: 25 Dec 2023 Credit: Cover Images
