King Charles ignores tradition with first look at Christmas address—not in Palace

 

King Charles is mixing things up this Christmas with a preview of his impending holiday address, which is everything from traditional.

Buckingham Palace has provided a sneak glimpse at the monarch's message.

For the first time in over two decades, the King taped his holiday greeting outside a royal home, using the majestic Fitzrovia Chapel in London as his background.

The Fitzrovia Chapel, an architectural masterpiece influenced by Byzantine style, was previously part of the Middlesex Hospital but is now a place for thought, exploration, and community.

It's an appropriate backdrop for a message that seeks to unite people from all walks of life, whether they practice a certain religion or none at all.

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This is the first time the Sovereign's Christmas message has been taped outside of a royal home since 2006, when it was televised from Southwark Cathedral.

The Christmas tree shown in the speech was decked with eco-friendly ornaments such as pine cones, metal bells, twisted glass, and exquisite glass baubles.

After the broadcast, the tree will not be forgotten: it has been donated to Croydon BME Forum and Macmillan Cancer Support's 'Can You C Me?' initiative, and it will ultimately be relocated to the Royal Trinity Hospice in Clapham, the UK's oldest hospice.

Queen Camilla, a patron of the Royal Trinity Hospice since 2006, has long supported the institution, and her most recent visit coincided with the hospice's 130th anniversary in 2021.

Following his own year of cancer treatment, King Charles donned a sleek navy blazer, white shirt, and blue-patterned tie for this year's Christmas message, maybe as a subtle homage to the NHS.

The blue and white colors may easily be taken as an homage to the healthcare services that have played an important role in his life, particularly after Buckingham Palace confirmed in February that the monarch was having treatment for an unidentified form of cancer.