The royals who attended memorial service missed by William, Kate and the King
With the King, William and Kate unable to attend a memorial service at Windsor Castle today, other working royals stepped up to the plate.
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Prince William was notably absent from a memorial service for his late godfather King Constantine of Greece on Tuesday.
The Prince of Wales said he had to pull out of the event at St George's Chapel in Windsor due to a "personal matter", without elaborating further.
William is thought to be taking on additional duties since King Charles, who also wasn't at Tuesday's ceremony, announced he had been diagnosed with cancer earlier this month. Also absent from the service was the Princess of Wales, who is currently recovering from abdominal surgery but is said to be doing well.
After taking the throne in 2022, the King reportedly vowed to "slim down" the monarchy to a core group of working royals, which some, including Princess Anne, has said is "not a good idea", and it looked especially slimmed down with three senior members out of action.
Nonetheless, other members of the Royal Family stepped up to make sure the monarchy was represented, as detailed below by Yahoo News.
Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson
The Duke of York's attendance is likely to have raised some eyebrows. His links with paedophile billionaire Jeffrey Epstein led to him facing a civil sexual abuse lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre, and although he settled outside of court without admitting wrongdoing, the episode was nonetheless an embarrassing one for the royals.
It was thought that Prince Andrew would live a private life away from the spotlight after the saga, something that was reinforced when the late Queen Elizabeth stripped him of his royal patronages.
Unconfirmed reports that he was fighting against being evicted from his home in the grounds of Windsor Castle suggested relations with the family had been badly strained, but things appear to have changed more recently.
On Tuesday, Andrew appeared to lead family members into St George's Chapel on Tuesday, suggesting that the royals may be willing to let him back into the fold after all. He was pictured side by side with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson and their daughter, Princess Beatrice.
Sarah, Duchess of York was diagnosed with skin cancer in January, just six months after being treated for breast cancer.
Queen Camilla
The Queen arrived at the memorial service separately, which might explain why Andrew had a rare opportunity to take the lead in the morning.
Despite her husband's cancer battle, she smiled as she arrived at Windsor Castle, accompanied by Constantine's widow Queen Anne-Marie, former Queen of the Hellenes. Camilla, 76, stepped up to the plate as the most senior member to represent the Royal Family in Charles's absence.
She is diligently continuing with her duties while providing support for her husband, who she recently said is “doing extremely well, under circumstances”.
Princess Beatrice
Princess Beatrice, the King's niece, was pictured with husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi as they sang together in St George's Chapel.
The couple visited Charles at his London home of Clarence House earlier this month following his cancer diagnosis and appeared to be in high spirits despite the difficult news.
Both Beatrice and her younger sister, Eugenie, are both reported to be on close terms with Prince Harry, whose relationship with the family has taken a lot of damage since stepping down as a senior royal and airing grievances in a number of high-profile interviews.
When Harry made a brief visit to the UK following the King's diagnosis, speculation mounted that he could have met up with Beatrice, but the Duke of Sussex left London 24 hours after arriving.
Anne, the Princess Royal
Princess Royal and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence were also pictured at today's memorial to Constantine, who died at the age of 82 in January last year.
Anne is another royal who is likely to step up by attending more events in the King's absence. Widely regarded as one of the hardest working royals, she recently made a last-minute trip to Namibia for the funeral service of President Hage Geingob on Saturday as Charles was unable to attend, according to the Mirror.
It was a quick visit, with the Princess Royal flying back to the UK for an appearance at the British Horseracing Authority's Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards 2024 at Ascot Racecourse on Monday.
Zara Tindall
Although not a working royal, Zara was also representing the family along with her husband, former rugby union player Mike Tindall.
The pair had reported attended the service for Constantine, who was toppled from the throne in a military coup, after flying back from a holiday in Iceland. With the royal family looking increasingly thin – and Zara and Mike considered one of the more popular royal couples – some have suggested Zara should be given a working role.
The Duke of Gloucester, the King’s cousin Lady Sarah Chatto, and Queen Elizabeth II's cousin Princess Alexandra were also among the royals in attendance.
