Inside King Charles' biggest Christmas ever: Who made the cut and who's in exile?
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King Charles is pushing the boat out for Christmas this year, inviting a whopping forty five family members to join him and Queen Camilla at Sandringham in one of the biggest regal festive jamborees of recent years. Who can blame our staunch monarch for wanting to draw his loved ones close at his Norfolk residence to raise a glass after his medical annus horribilis? He has spent the last gruelling year battling an undisclosed form of cancer, along with his daughter-in-law, the Princess of Wales, who is also recovering from chemotherapy treatment.
It will cheer the country’s flagging spirit to see Charles and Kate join their wider family on the royal walkabout as they file to St Mary Magdalene Church at Sandringham on Christmas Day. It is likely that part of the intention behind Charles’s lavish shindig is that he wishes to thank and honour his relatives who have stepped in and up during the last year of straightened circumstances, propping up such a slimmed-down monarchy. The peerless Princess Anne, her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timonty Lawrence, along with Anne’s children and grandchildren will be present, along with the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and their children. Nothing new here because they are royal regulars on the Sandringham Christmas circuit.
![[Prince Harry,Meghan Markle]](https://static.standard.co.uk/2024/09/02/10/54/Prince-Harry-Meghan-Markle-h6bsjthk.jpeg?quality=75&auto=webp&width=960)
However, this year, what is endearingly modern is that Charles and Camilla — like most of the country — will, as the result of divorce, be gathering a blended family for Christmas. Camilla, who had to forgo spending Christmas Day with her children and grandchildren for two decades when the late Queen was alive, can, as chatelaine of Sandringham, finally include her own family. Her son Tom Parker Bowles, will be part of the house party, along with his children, Lola, 17 and Freddie, 14, while Camilla’s daughter, Laura Lopes, is also expected to attend with her husband and three children. It is believed that Camilla’s sister, Annabel Elliot, is also invited.
![[Clarence House Christmas tree]](https://static.standard.co.uk/2024/12/12/13/14/Clarence-House-Christmas-tree-k7nw4nne.jpeg?quality=75&auto=webp&width=960)
