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Princess Beatrice’s royal wedding in October won’t be televised for the masses.
British broadcasters BBC and ITV announced over the weekend they will not broadcast the 31-year-old’s big day like they did her sister, Princess Eugenie, in 2018, Vanity Fair reported on Tuesday. In a statement to the UK’s Daily Mail, the BBC shared they wouldn’t replace regular programming but would feature “news coverage of the wedding.”
Vanity Fair noted that ever since Princess Margaret married Anthony Armstrong-Jones in 1960, royal weddings are usually televised, including smaller ceremonies without government involvement, like Prince Edward’s 1998 wedding to Sophie, Countess of Wessex. That ceremony was broadcast into millions of homes.
The outlet noted the scandal surrounding Beatrice’s father, Prince Andrew, might be an explanation of why “broadcasters are feeling lukewarm.” Following a disastrous interview with the BBC about his relationship with the late Jeffrey Epstein, Andrew announced he’s asked his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, if he can “step back” from his public duties.
Prince Andrew, Duke of York sits next to his daughter Princess Beatrice during the Trooping the Colour ceremony on June 16, 2007, in London. Each year the official birthday of Queen Elizabeth II is commemorated with a military parade and march-past of fully trained, operational troops from the Household Division.
(Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)
“It has become clear to me over the last few days that the circumstances relating to my former association with Jeffrey Epstein have become a major disruption to my family’s work and the valuable work going on in the many organizations and charities that I am proud to support,” the statement posted to the royal family’s Twitter account reads in part.
“Therefore, I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for the foreseeable future, and she has given her permission.”
The statement concludes: “I continued to unequivocally regret my ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein. His suicide has left many unanswered questions, particularly for his victims, and I deeply sympathize with everyone who has been affected and wants some form of closure. I can only hope that, in time, they will be able to rebuild their lives. Of course, I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.”
Epstein, 66, died in jail on Aug. 10 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges that prosecutors alleged involved many girls over several years in the early 2000s.
This undated photo released by Buckingham Palace shows Britain’s Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, in Italy. Prince Andrew and his former wife Sarah Ferguson announced on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2019, the engagement of their elder daughter, Princess Beatrice to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
(Photo courtesy of Princess Eugenie/Buckingham Palace via AP)
As of December, Andrew, 59, still reportedly planned on walking his daughter the aisle.
However, Vanity Fair noted Andrew’s woes weren’t the only reason why broadcasters ultimately chose not to showcase the royal wedding. In October 2018, both BBC and ITV blocked off hours to devote coverage to Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank’s wedding despite the pair being private citizens. However, when the government estimated the wedding’s public costs would be nearly $3 million, there was public outrage.
In September 2019, Beatrice’s parents announced her engagement to property tycoon Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi. Beatrice is ninth in line to the throne.
Fox News’ Tyler McCarthy contributed to this report.
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