Prince Edward was notably missing from the Royal Ascot, which kicked off on Tuesday, as King Charles welcomed members of the royal family at the event.
The King and Queen Camilla were joined by Princess Anne, Peter Phillips and his new bride Harriet, and Zara and Mike Tindall. The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh were not present, despite having attended previous Ascot events.
A Palace source had revealed that Edward would not be attending as he has another engagement to take care of. And this had been informed just hours after reports of a £108,000 debt that Edward had written off came to surface.
Edward wisely chose to focus on the task at hand as he visited the Barnard Castle in County Durham, to meet the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award participants.
This visit had marked the DofE scheme’s 70th anniversary, and this special visit recognised a key member, Judy Bowerbank, 70, with a certificate for her five decades of volunteering.
Edward has been patron of the charity since King Charles’s ascension as the monarch granted his youngest sibling with the titles and honours of their late father, who had started the Duke of Edinburgh Award.
The news came after Palace sources confirmed that for Edward’s failed TV production company, the royal had to foot the rent, which was on royal property in Surrey. The sources said that while the palace did pay a portion of the rent, most of it was waived with the cost “absorbed by the Royal couple”.
2026-06-17 12:17:00
