The Princes of Wales’ ‘Together at Christmas’ carol service was an annual royal family affair at Westminster Abbey on December 6, without the Duke of York.

Several members of the cabinet were present to support Catherine, including Prince William and their three children, Zara Tindall, Princess Beatrice and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh.

According to Ephraim Hardcastle’s column in the Daily Mail, the king is insisting that his disgraced brother be given the “status he is due” after Andrew was stripped of his royal duties due to his ties to the financier in disgrace Jeffrey Epstein.

The insider reported that Wales would not put Andrew on the event’s guest list despite suggestions he could be seated out of sight “behind a pillar”.

“The king has done his best to bring Andrew back into the family fold and insists that he be given his rightful status. But William and Kate do not share the love,” the columnist said.

“A mole whispers that for the second year in a row, suggestions that Andrew be invited to Kate’s annual carol service, possibly seated behind a pillar, have been rejected.

“Although it was a family affair, with 22 members of the extended tribe in attendance, there was no room for Uncle Andy.”

The snub appears preventative, as Palace sources have since confirmed. The Duke of York will not join the royal family at Sandringham for the Christmas holidays due to his ties to a suspected Chinese spy.

The 50-year-old businessman, who was revealed to be Yang Tengbo, recently lost his appeal to allow him to remain in the UK on national security grounds.

Mr Yang was first banned from entering the UK in 2023 by then-Home Secretary Suella Braverman after the Home Office claimed he may have engaged in “secret and deceptive activities” on behalf of the Chinese government.

It is alleged that Mr Yang had relationships with high-profile figures, including the Duke of York, “which could be exploited for political interference by the Chinese state”.

On Monday, an anonymous Buckingham Palace insider told Sky News UK that King Charles was at his wits’ end with his disgraced brother.

“There is a limit to tolerance and forgiveness (Charles) can exercise even in a family context,” the source said.

Andrew’s fiercely loyal ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, who returned to the royal family’s Christmas celebrations last year for the first time in more than three decades, also reportedly skipped the festivities to support him.

The Yorks are expected to celebrate alone at the Royal Lodge.