Clear sign’ of 2025 royal wedding after surprise guest spotted at Sandringham…. Read More

A coveted invitation to spend Christmas at Sandringham with the royals was extended to Samuel Chatto’s girlfriend – leading to rumours of an upcoming royal wedding

A royal Christmas tradition that was set aside for Meghan Markle’s benefit in 2017 has been abandoned again – and it could be a sign of an imminent wedding.

For decades, it was unheard of that Royal Family members would invite their partners to Sandringham before they were married. The likes of Princess Kate and Mike Tindall had to wait until tying the knot. But that unspoken rule was broken when Meghan Markle was invited back in 2017.

This year, Princess Margaret’s grandson, Samuel Chatto, was given special permission to invite his girlfriend, Eleanor Ekserdjian, to spend Christmas with the royals.

And one “observer of the Windsors” told the Daily Mail’s Richard Eden that it could mean wedding bells will soon be arriving.

“This is a clear sign there will be a royal wedding in the new year,” they claimed.

Samuel, 28, who creates pottery in his studio in West Sussex, started dating fellow-artist Eleanor in 2021. She was seen walking alongside him as they made their way to St Mary Magdalene Church on Christmas Day.

Samuel wrapped up warm in a £115 charcoal and beige merino wool Highgrove Heritage Scarf, which The King chose as his gift to virtually all of his close relatives last Christmas.

His artistic streak is inherited from his father, Daniel Chatto, a former actor who has become a noted painter. He married Lady Sarah Chatto, the daughter of Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, niece of Queen Elizabeth II and cousin of King Charles III, in 1994

When it comes to his artistic heritage, Samuel himself said: “I’ve always had a strong affinity with creating objects, having spent much of my childhood crafting imagined landscapes and sculptural models, which naturally led me to clay during my later years at school.”

He’s come a long way since then, even winning an apprenticeship with Japanese porcelain master Yagi Akira in Kyoto. This connection led to a rare royal outing for Samual, as he attended June’s Japanese State Banquet at Buckingham Palace – alongside King Charles and Queen Camilla, Prince William, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester

Among his other accomplishments Sam, who is is 29th in the royal line of succession, also travelled to India in 2019 for a six-week yoga teacher training course, which he described as an “incredibly eye opening experience”.