The BBC has issued a statement on its decision to axe its live coverage of the royals’ Commonwealth Day service, where Princess Kate, Prince William, King Charles, Queen Camilla will all be in attendance
The BBC has revealed the real reason it has axed its live coverage of one of the biggest royal events of the year – in favour of Escape to The Country.
For decades, the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey has been a set piece event in the Royal Family’s calendar – but the times are changing. For the first time in 37 years, the BBC won’t be broadcasting today’s service live. Instead, they will be showing a property show – a decision that does not bode well for the crisis-hit monarchy, according to experts.
Amid the ongoing scandal engulfing Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and the ongoing revelations about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, the Commonwealth Day service looks to be a more muted affair than usual. This year will see King Charles, Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales attend the service, alongside Princess Anne and her husband Sir Tim Laurence – but Prince Edward and wife Sophie are not expected to join. Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie will also be missing from the line-up. The King and Queen will afterwards host the usual reception – but the number of senior royals marking the celebration is down to just six.
READ MORE: Royals plunged into chaos as BBC axes huge event after Andrew shame in major shake-up
Speaking out on the move that’s left royal insiders speechless, the BBC said about the decision not to air the service live: “Our decision not to broadcast the Commonwealth Day ceremony in the same way we’ve done in previous years reflects the difficult choices we have to make in light of our funding challenges. “BBC News plans to cover the service across its platforms, including the BBC One bulletins and rolling news channel.”
The service not being televised live this year casts doubt on the future of the institution, experts tell the Mirror. Royal author and historian Tessa Dunlop argues: “The BBC ‘s dumping of the commonwealth service speaks to establishment slippage – one that incorporates four previously revered institutions – the BBC, the Royal Family, the Church of England, and the Commonwealth. In these tense times previously we’d have sought consolation in national rituals and shared events. Not anymore.” She adds that, “More specifically, it is a warning sign for the Royal Family that things are not what they were.”
The expert adds: “Amidst all the war talk it was easy to miss the quiet announcement that the BBC would not be broadcasting Commonwealth Service live. Once a big beast in the royal calendar, it has long been a national staple. Recently the service has generated some of our most infamous Windsor moments. Who can forget the tension between the Sussexes and the then Cambridges when in 2020 the watching public clocked William’s puckered brow and the silent standoff between Meghan and Kate.”
“On a less superficial level, the annual service in Westminster Abbey is a landmark event that speaks to Britain’s soft power in a voluntary association of countries who still look to the monarch as their titular head,” Tessa explains, adding that this moment is indicative of the “greatest threat” facing the monarchy – that increasingly, the public care less and less about them.
“That the BBC no longer considers the event worth broadcasting live highlights not only the diminished relevance of the Commonwealth but likewise royalty’s shrinking cultural capital. While many republicans may dream of a revolution, in fact the Windsors’ greatest threat is a creeping apathy. Disgusted by the Andrew hoo-ha and bored by the same-old royal players who never explain, or apologise, the nation’s reserve of good will gets ever smaller.”
Tessa Dunlop’s Lest We Forget, 100 stories of love, loss and heroism is out in paperback on 7 May 2026.
