Prince Charles: Why Duke arrived at Sandringham alone – where is Camilla Parker Bowles?

Camilla Parker Bowles has been married to Prince Charles, the son of Queen Elizabeth II, since 2005. However, when all the royal family arrived at the Christmas Day church service at St Mary Magdalene church in Sandringham today – the Duchess of Cornwall was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Prince Charles arrived with his two sons, Prince William, 36, and Prince Harry, 34, along with their respective wives, Kate Middleton, 36, and Meghan Markle, 37. So why didn’t Camilla accompany her husband to the important festive celebration?

The reason behind the Duchess’s no-show was that Camilla has been suffering from a heavy cold.

She was also forced to pull out of the Queen’s annual Christmas lunch and Buckingham Palace last week on 19 December.

Charles and Camilla have proved their relationship is going strong in this year’s Christmas card.

The image shows the couple looking lovingly at each other as they sit on a bench in the grounds of Clarence House.

The Duchess of Cornwall looks elegant in a cream dress while Charles is typically smart in a suit.

The message in the card reads: “Wishing you a very Happy Christmas and New Year.”

However, Camilla wasn’t the only senior royal to miss the Norfolk church service.

Prince Philip, 98, didn’t accompany his wife of many decades as he chose to spend it “privately.”

Unlike Camilla, the Duke of Edinburgh is not ill. “The duke is in perfectly good health, he is just spending the day privately,” a Buckingham Palace source said.

Philip officially retired from public duties in August 2017 and made his final public appearance on 2 August 2017 when he met Royal Marines at Buckingham Palace and celebrated the achievements of servicemen who took part in the 1664 Global Challenge.

Kate and William’s three children, Prince George, five, Princess Charlotte, three, and Prince Louis, eight months, did also not make an appearance at the Sandringham church.

The only time the tots have been spotted at a Christmas Day service was when the family spent the festive period in Berkshire with the Middleton family in 2016.

At the time, George was three and Charlotte was 18 months. The family were joined by Kate’s mother Carole, father Michael, sister Pippa and Michael.

James Brookes, royal commentator at Royal Central, previously said it was unlikely Prince Louis would be joining in with the church service. 

He said: “We have to remember there will be nannies and other household staff on hand to help entertain and look after the children, should the parents want or need a few minutes break, and in terms of the Christmas Day service, I’d say it’s unlikely we’ll see Louis.

“The Cambridges waited until Prince George and Charlotte had grown up a little before taking them for the first time in 2016, so again, it’s likely the nannies will look after Louis while the rest of the family are at the church in the morning.”

Royal nanny Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo, was trained at the elite Norland School for nannies which teaches its students how to care for the children of the rich and famous.