Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie are expected to spend the Christmas season away from their parents, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, according to a royal expert who described the family's relationship as "tense".

Andrew and Sarah have been uninvited from the royal festivities at Sandringham due to the scandal they've been at the centre of since the release of Virginia Giuffre's Nobody's Girl memoir. The fallout prompted Andrew to lose his Prince and Duke of York titles, and both he and his ex-wife have been evicted from Royal Lodge.

As a result, royal biographer Andrew Lownie tells Cosmopolitan UK that Beatrice and Eugenie may opt to distance themselves and "go to Sandringham and muck in with the big party rather than with their parents."

"[Beatrice and Eugenie] know where their bread is buttered, and they want to keep in with them," he said of how the Princesses are likely to side with the Royal Family as the scandal continues to develop.

princess beatrice and eugenie's "tense" plans to ditch parents at christmas, from royal expertpinterest
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"Beatrice and Eugenie's business careers have predicated on their remaining Princesses and remaining in the royal fold," the Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York author went on. "So we will see them want to maintain that."

There is also a possibility that Beatrice and Eugenie will skip Christmas with the royals altogether. "Last year, Eugenie went to her husband's family," Lownie tells Cosmopolitan UK, adding that the pair may already have "commitments with their in-laws."

With Christmas fast approaching, we won't have to wait long to find out where Beatrice and Eugenie decide to spend the Big Day...

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Jade Biggs
Freelance Writer
Jade Biggs (she/her) is one of Cosmopolitan UK's freelance writers, working across all sections including entertainment, beauty, body, and sex and relationships. She previously held the position of Features Writer, covering everything from breaking news and the latest royal gossip, to the health and fitness trends taking over your TikTok feed. Jade has a degree in journalism and has been a journalist and content editor for ten years, interviewing leading researchers, high-profile influencers, and industry experts in that time. She is a cat mom to four fur babies and is obsessed with Drag Race, bottomless brunches, and wearing clothes only suitable for Bratz dolls. Follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.