King Charles arrives solo to Sunday church service in Sandringham forward of internet hosting his ‘greatest ever’ household Christmas on the Norfolk property

The King has stepped out at a Sunday church service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham this morning – ahead of hosting his loved ones for Christmas. 

Last week, Charles’ eldest son, the Prince of Wales, revealed he will be spending December 25 with no fewer than 45 people at the monarch’s private estate in Norfolk.

But despite there only being three days until the Royal Family gather for the big day, the King, 76, looked calm as he headed to church today.

Sporting a beige trench coat to combat the chilly temperatures, the monarch seemed to enjoy his scenic stroll to the service solo.

He teamed his sophisticated garment with smart grey trousers and brown shoes and gloves, while holding a closed umbrella in hand. 

The monarch looked in high spirits as he greeted a member of the clergy at St Mary Magdalene Church.

Charles beamed as he waved to well-wishes who were hoping to catch a glimpse of the royal on his outing.

It comes after Prince William told how he was looking forward to spending Christmas with 45 members of his family ‘all in one room’ as he attended a seasonal event for families of 1st Battalion Mercian Regiment, in his role as colonel-in-chief, at Bulford, Wiltshire, last week.

Those invited to Sandringham can look forward to a mixture of the traditional and some festive fun of the Royal Family’s own making.

Members of The Firm open their presents on Christmas Eve in a nod to the family’s German origins. 

They lay out their gifts on trestle tables and exchange them at teatime – and are known to enjoy giving each other novelty presents, typically buying things that are cheap and will make people laugh rather than spending a lot on big, lavish gifts. 

For instance, Prince William reportedly gave his late grandmother a pair of slippers emblazoned with her face. 

Kate, the Princess of Wales, however, opted for something safer for Queen Elizabeth – a jar of homemade chutney. They then don black tie for a dinner on Christmas Eve. 

The following day, the Royals attend the service at the Church of St Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham estate, where they are greeted by well-wishers, before returning for a traditional lunch of roast turkey and all the trimmings. 

They sit down ready to eat at 1.15pm sharp, according to Queen Elizabeth II‘s former chef Darren McGrady, who catered for Christmas at Sandringham frequently in the 1980s and 1990s.

On Christmas night, they are said to play parlour games including charades and bingo.

While this year’s guest list has not been officially announced or confirmed, the Queen’s son Tom Parker Bowles, 49, has said that he will be there for the first time at his mother’s request.

As Queen Camilla recovers from a bout of pneumonia and amid the King’s battle with an undisclosed form of cancer, Mr Parker Bowles said it had been ‘a hell of a two years for them’.

The invitation has always been open to him, but perhaps it is those health issues that have prompted him to accept this year. 

Describing his mother as a ‘resilient woman’, he told the Daily Telegraph: ‘My mum said, ‘I’d love you to come, I haven’t had Christmas with you for a long time.’

He added: ‘The older you get, the more conscious you become of mortality, especially with illnesses and the rest of it.’

The Queen’s son confesses that he knows little of what is in store, only that ‘there’s turkey and sprouts and church. And I have to bring a suit and a dinner jacket.’

It comes after it was revealed that King Charles will continue to need cancer treatment in 2025.

A Buckingham Palace source has said the 76-year-old’s health is still being ‘managed’ but is ‘moving in a positive direction’. 

His Majesty intends to return to a full programme of public duties next year. This will include ‘exciting’ UK and international visits in the first half of 2025, the insider said.

‘His treatment has been moving in a positive direction, as a managed condition the treatment cycle will continue into the new year’, the Palace source said.

On Friday, Charles made a wry joke about his health condition when he was asked how he was doing at an event in east London.

He went to a community event at Waltham Forest Town Hall in Walthamstow alongside his wife, Queen Camilla. 

Harvinder Rattan, a Sikh faith representative, said: ‘Your Majesty, good morning, how are you?’

The King, 76, replied, jokingly: ‘I’m still alive.’

Charles has increased his engagements recently, including a visit to Apple’s London HQ and a meeting with CEO Tim Cook. 

‘You could almost forget at the start of the year this was a man that faced the shock of being diagnosed with cancer’, a source said to Sky News.

Charles has been carrying on with his duties despite facing a personally challenging year in which both he and the Princess of Wales were diagnosed with cancer.

News of Charles’ cancer, undisclosed in its form, came in February, after it was discovered while he was treated in hospital for an enlarged prostate in January.

He cancelled all face-to-face public duties but returned in April and has since travelled to France for D-Day commemorations, hosted incoming state visits for the Emperor of Japan and the Emir of Qatar, and undertaken a hectic tour to Australia and Samoa with the Queen, despite still undergoing outpatient cancer treatment.

Last Thursday, the Prince and Princess of Wales released their Christmas card, featuring a photograph of the couple with their three children in Norfolk in a nod to Kate’s own cancer battle.

The card was posted online at 2pm, three hours after it emerged the family would not attend the traditional Royal Family pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace.

Prince William and Kate are instead said to be looking forward to spending time with members of the Royal Family as usual at the Sandringham estate over Christmas.

The card image shows William and Kate in Norfolk, where Anmer Hall became a safe haven for the Princess while she recovered from cancer treatment earlier this year. 

It is taken from the video released by Kate in September which confirmed she would return to public duties following the completion of her course of chemotherapy. 

The post on social media said: ‘Wishing everyone a very happy Christmas’ – with the words inside the card saying: ‘Wishing you a very Happy Christmas and New Year.’ 

MailOnline understands the Waleses are already in Norfolk with their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis , and had always planned to be.

It has also been made clear that William and Kate’s absence from the lunch was in no way linked to Prince Andrew pulling out amid the ongoing Chinese ‘spy’ scandal.

The confirmation from the royal source was given just before 11am, at around exactly the same time that Charles was spotted arriving at Buckingham Palace for the lunch.

Kate, who has been gradually returning to public events after revealing in September that she had finished a course of cancer treatment, was last seen with her family on December 6 at Westminster Abbey for her ‘Together at Christmas’ carol service.

Four days later, William said during a visit to Picton Barracks in Wiltshire that he was looking forward to but ‘not ready’ for Christmas and would celebrate with 45 family members at Sandringham ‘all in one room’, although they are ‘normally spread out’.

George, Charlotte and Louis have been on their Christmas holidays since last Friday when Lambrook School near Windsor, which they all attend, closed until January 8.

William and Kate have been pictured arriving for the lunch in previous years, including 2018 and 2019. The event was not held in 2020 or 2021 because of the pandemic.

It comes after William described the past year which has seen his wife and father being treated for cancer as ‘brutal’.

The Prince spoke candidly about the royal family’s major health scares in an interview while in South Africa last month, saying 2024 has ‘probably been the hardest year in my life’ and a ‘dreadful’ experience.

When asked on November 7 about his year, William replied: ‘Honestly, it’s been dreadful. It’s probably been the hardest year in my life. So, trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult.

‘But I’m so proud of my wife, I’m proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done. But from a personal family point of view, it’s been, yeah, it’s been brutal.’

Kate appeared in a deeply personal video with her family in September to confirm her return to public duties following the completion of a course of chemotherapy.

The princess’ heartfelt message about her cancer journey was spoken over images showing the Waleses and their children enjoying the outdoors, and she said her focus now was ‘doing what I can to stay cancer free’.

She described the previous nine months since her serious health issues began as ‘incredibly tough for us as a family’ and how the ‘cancer journey is complex, scary and unpredictable for everyone’, with the experience giving her a ‘new perspective on everything.’ 

The King’s cancer diagnosis was announced in February and he has been receiving treatment for an undisclosed form of the disease as an outpatient, but will be returning to fuller duties and greater overseas travel next year.

The Duke of York pulled out of the King’s pre-Christmas lunch last week as he continues to be dogged by his links to an alleged Chinese spy.

Andrew decided not to attend the gathering after speaking to his ex-wife and close friend Sarah, Duchess of York, according to a source.

The King’s brother had already withdrawn from joining senior royals at Sandringham for the festive period.

It was previously revealed in a High Court hearing that alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo, who was banned from the UK, was said to have been a ‘close’ confidant of Andrew.

Mr Yang, who was named after an anonymity order was lifted on Monday, has insisted it was ‘entirely untrue’ to claim he was involved in espionage and that he has ‘done nothing wrong or unlawful’.