King Charles Will Be Delivering His Annual Christmas Speech From a Hospital…..Read More

He’s deviating from almost two decades of tradition after a “brutal” year.

It’s been a holiday season of firsts for the Windsors, with King Charles breaking royal protocol to invite 45 family members to Sandringham estate this year and holding his annual pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace instead of Windsor Castle for the first time during his reign. Now, the monarch–who is still undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer–will reportedly hold his annual Christmas speech at a hospital instead of a royal residence for a meaningful reason.

In a poignant nod to his ongoing health issues as well as daughter-in-law Kate Middleton’s highly-publicized battle with cancer this year, King Charles decided to break from 18 years of tradition by holding the annual address in a non-royal home. According to The Telegraph, the king decided to film his speech at the Fitzrovia Chapel, which was previously part of the Middlesex Hospital, as an intentional shout-out to the health care industry.

Per the source, King Charles was “absolutely enchanted” by the former hospital chapel’s Byzantine-style architecture, which served as an “astonishing” backdrop for this year’s speech. While the hospital closed in 2005, the chapel is still in use and has ties to Charles’s family: In 1928, it was rebuilt with the help of his grandfather, King George VI.

While the palace has yet to officially share what talking points will be on the docket, the king will reportedly speak on overcoming personal, national, and international difficulties with the help of a supportive community, per People.

It’s a sharp contrast to the royal family’s status quo, as King Charles previously followed in the late Queen Elizabeth’s footsteps by addressing the nation in 2022 at George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, and then at Buckingham Palace last year. However, after a “tough” year of health issues, Charles is prioritizing showing his support for those battling cancer.

According to People, the longtime patron of Macmillan Cancer Support also donated the Christmas tree used in his video speech to the organization’s “Can You C Me?” project, and it will be put on display at the Royal Trinity Hospice in Clapham. Only time will tell whether King Charles uses his Christmas Day address to share a personal update on his health journey, but given the venue, a rare comment isn’t totally out of the realm of possibility.