Christmas is fast approaching, and much like my own tradition of eating Quality Streets and slices of brie by the kilo, the Royal Family are following their own. They've already gathered for Kate Middleton's annual Christmas carol concert (although some royals were noticeably missing), and as usual will spend the Big Day itself at the Sandringham Estate. Two royals, however, have been uninvited from spending Christmas Day at Sandringham.
Since their alleged ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein came to light once more following the posthumous release of Virginia Giuffre's Nobody's Girl memoir, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson have been on the outs with the royals. Andrew was stripped of his Prince and Duke of York titles, meaning Sarah also lost her right to go by the Duchess of York. The pair were evicted from the Royal Lodge home they have shared for many years, too. It's unclear when Andrew and Sarah, who have been divorced for decades, will actually move out of the mansion, but it's thought to be sometime in the new year.
With that in mind, will Andrew and Sarah spend Christmas together at Royal Lodge? And, will they be joined by their daughters, Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice? Here's what we know about how the York family will spend the 2025 holiday season...
Where will Andrew and Sarah spend Christmas this year?
According to royal biographer Andrew Lownie, who wrote Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, the former Duke and Duchess of York have "got plenty of options" when it comes to where they'll spend Christmas and what they'll do.
One likely possibility is that Andrew and Sarah will spend one final Christmas together at Royal Lodge before they are forced to leave. The pair spent Christmas together there last year with their staff, but according to Lownie, this year they may well invite friends over to celebrate with them. "I [think] they would take advantage of this last Christmas to do all sorts of entertaining there," he exclusively tells Cosmopolitan UK.
"They've got friends... there are friends that go back a long way, and [have] stuck with them," the author added of who might make the Christmas invite list. "Andrew still has his shooting friends."
On the flip side, the former Duke and Duchess may be invited elsewhere for the festive season, given that they're expected to leave Royal Lodge in the new year, and so might have started preparing for their relocation. "They may go to friends," Lownie suggests, going on to say that whatever the pair get up to, they won't have a "terrible Christmas."
Will Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie spend Christmas with their parents?
Unlike their parents, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are very much still invited to spend Christmas with the rest of the family at Sandringham, per royal tradition. Whether or not they do that, however, remains in question.
Last year, Eugenie spent Christmas with her husband and his family, while Beatrice opted to join the Royal Family at Sandringham. This year, it's possible that the pair could spend Andrew and Sarah's final Christmas with them at Royal Lodge, but Lownie says their relationship is "tense"—so that's unlikely.
In a bid to distance themselves from the scandal surrounding Andrew and Sarah, Beatrice and Eugenie might "go to Sandringham and muck in with the big party" if they haven't already got plans with their in-laws, according to Lownie.
With just weeks to go until Christmas, we haven't got long until we find out what the York family will get up to...
