King Charles and royal family, minus Andrew, gather for Christmas at Sandringham

King Charles III and members of the royal family — minus his disgraced brother, the former Prince Andrew — walked to church for Christmas services Thursday morning on the king’s private Sandringham Estate, where they traditionally gather for the holiday. 

Charles and Queen Camilla, along with the Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate, and their children, Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte, and their extended family attended the service at St. Mary Magdalene Church at Sandringham, in Norfolk, about 100 miles north of London. 

Members of the royal family also stopped to greet people in the crowd outside.

Andrew was not present for the holiday gathering, BBC News reported, in the wake of the scandal over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He did not attend last year either. In October, he was stripped of his remaining titles and honors, including prince, and is now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.

Later in the day, the king’s annual Christmas Day speech to the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth is expected to focus on the theme of pilgrimage. 

His address was recorded at Westminster Abbey, the landmark known as the site of lavish coronations and royal weddings it has hosted for more than 1,000 years. The abbey is also the focus of an annual pilgrimage to the tomb of Edward the Confessor, which lies at the heart of the church. Edward, a monk-like monarch, was canonized as a saint in 1161.

The monarch’s annual holiday message is watched by millions of people in the U.K. and across the Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 56 independent nations, most of which have historic ties to Britain. The prerecorded speech is broadcast at 3 p.m. there, when many families are enjoying their traditional Christmas lunch.

The speech is one of the rare occasions when Charles, 77, can voice his own views and doesn’t seek guidance from the government. It usually has a strong religious framework, reflects current issues and sometimes draws on the monarch’s personal experiences.

This is Charles’ fourth Christmas speech since ascending to the throne after his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died in September 2022.

The address comes just two weeks after Charles made a deeply personal television appearance in which he said “good news” from his doctors meant that he would be able to reduce his treatment for cancer in the new year.

The king was diagnosed with a still undisclosed form of cancer in early 2024. Buckingham Palace says his treatment is now moving to a “precautionary phase” and his condition will be monitored to ensure his continued recovery.

During last year’s Christmas address, Charles honored care workers around the country and gave a special thanks to the doctors and nurses who supported him after his cancer diagnosis.

Catherine, Princess of Wales, also underwent treatment for cancer last year. She said in January that she was in remission after going through some “hard times” during her recovery. Kate, as she is widely called, has not shared details about what type of cancer it was. 

She and her husband, Prince William, Prince of Wales and heir to the throne, have three children: 12-year-old Prince George of Wales, 10-year-old Princess Charlotte of Wales and 7-year-old Prince Louis of Wales.