General News for the Wales Family 3: March 2025-

[sophie25]

Yeah, he's said that while George is definitely a Villa supporter, Charlotte and Louis claim to be, but he's not holding them to that, wanting them to decide on their own which team they support as they get older and more into the game, which is fair.

As for William's friends, I don't know which teams they support, but as a huge football fan myself, I know this:
1. If my friend offered me tickets to a Champions League match — any Champions League match — I would go with no hesitation.

2. You don't have to be a fan of a team to go to a match, enjoy it, and get into it. I'm not a Barcelona fan at all, but when my friend and I went to a match at the Camp Nou while we were on vacation, I found myself swept up in the crowd's excitement and cheering every goal, even though I was bitter that my own team's best player had recently signed with Barcelona.

3. If you don't already have an allegiance to a team, you can become a fan of a team that a friend or family member is passionate about. My brother is a huge Arsenal supporter and I started out watching matches with him purely as a way to spend more time with him and understand something he loved so much. Twenty years later, I think I'm an even more fanatical Arsenal supporter than he is. I can definitely relate if that's how William's friends have come to support Villa. Indeed, that's the way William himself became a supporter:


In any case, I loved seeing William and George's reactions to the Villa match. Even though they fell short, Villa's comeback was so exciting. Personally, I'm relieved, though, because had they progressed, Arsenal and Villa would have played in the semi-finals, and I hate playing other Premier League teams in the Champions League. Crisis averted. Sorry, William and George!

I was rooting for Aston Villa and William and George were gutted at the end but the aristo pals, to me, just look fake in their enthusiasm.

 

[Elly C]

Are these people true friend's or just hangers on? For what it's worth I doubt most, if not all of them, couldn't give a hoot for football but want to curry favour with William, it's a bit embarrassing.

Well the Duke of Westminster is godfather to Prince George so that’s suggests to me he’s a true friend of the family.
As to whether the Westminster family have a genuine interest in football, we none of us know for sure, but you seem to have made up your mind.

 

[Hallo girl]

Williams close friends have been by his side since childhood, in some cases their parents were friends of the family. A close knit circle that do not betray confidences.
Whether or not they support Aston Villa I have no idea, does it really matter. [.....]

 

[sophie25]

Reports say the family will be spending Easter privately and won't be at Windsor Castle.

 

[Blog Real]

According to the Mirror, the Prince and Princess of Wales will not join King Charles III and Queen Camilla for the traditional Easter service at Windsor Castle. Instead, they will spend the Easter weekend with their children at their country home in Norfolk.

William and Kate to skip royal Easter service after 'King Charles discussion'

Prince William and Kate are opting to spend the Easter weekend with their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis at their home in Norfolk rather than join the King and Queen at Windsor Castle

www.mirror.co.uk

 

[Elly C]

If the report is true, then that’s a real shame. It’s a tradition that the immediate family are together for the Easter service- I know there have been exceptions over the years, but it is something people expect to see. Whilst we can’t know William’s reasoning for this decision, it’s likely to be met with some raised eyebrows.

 

[Somebody]

It's not an official engagement. That people line up to see royals attend a church service is their prerogative but I am glad that they feel the freedom to celebrate Easter in a way that works best for their family. People might now also line up in Norfolk

 

[Blog Real]

It's not an official engagement. That people line up to see royals attend a church service is their prerogative but I am glad that they feel the freedom to celebrate Easter in a way that works best for their family. People might now also line up in Norfolk

I happened to be looking at some photos of this event during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, and it is interesting that Charles and Camilla were not in the habit of attending, at least that is the perception from the photos I saw.

 

[sophie25]

It's not an official engagement. That people line up to see royals attend a church service is their prerogative but I am glad that they feel the freedom to celebrate Easter in a way that works best for their family. People might now also line up in Norfolk

Can't see it, I have a feeling we won't see the family on Easter Sunday at all.

 

[oldetonian]

I’ve seen a lot of people comment about how William should attend church because he’s the future head of the Church of England.

However, I would have liked to have seen the same criticism when Charles was heir as he didn’t attend Easter at Windsor every year (and only attended twice in recent years before he became King) opting to spend time in Scotland with his wife.

Crathie Kirk is also not in the Church of England.

 

[Blog Real]

I’ve seen a lot of people comment about how William should attend church because he’s the future head of the Church of England.

However, I would have liked to have seen the same criticism when Charles was heir as he didn’t attend Easter at Windsor every year (and only attended twice in recent years before he became King) opting to spend time in Scotland with his wife.

Crathie Kirk is also not in the Church of England.

And William used to attend Easter Mass regularly before Charles became king. So we can conclude that William may be following Charles' pattern in this regard.

 

[Hallo girl]

I happened to be looking at some photos of this event during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, and it is interesting that Charles and Camilla were not in the habit of attending, at least that is the perception from the photos I saw.

That is quite true I had forgotten that.

 

[Hallo girl]

I’ve seen a lot of people comment about how William should attend church because he’s the future head of the Church of England.

However, I would have liked to have seen the same criticism when Charles was heir as he didn’t attend Easter at Windsor every year (and only attended twice in recent years before he became King) opting to spend time in Scotland with his wife.

Crathie Kirk is also not in the Church of England.

It is the Church of Scotland, and he is King of Scotland. It was good enough for Anne to be married in so I am sure it is good enough for Charles to worship in.

 

[oldetonian]

It is the Church of Scotland, and he is King of Scotland. It was good enough for Anne to be married in so I am sure it is good enough for Charles to worship in.

But there is no head of the Church of Scotland. And the Church of Scotland is Presbyterian, not Anglican.

They make the argument that William should attend Easter because he will be head of the Church of ENGLAND. They should criticise Charles in the same way.

 

[Hallo girl]

But there is no head of the Church of Scotland. And the Church of Scotland is Presbyterian, not Anglican.

They make the argument that William should attend Easter because he will be head of the Church of ENGLAND. They should criticise Charles in the same way.

we are going off topic, let us move on.

 

[tommy100]

It is disappointing because it feels like we don't get to see them all that much and the Easter Sunday church appearance is a nice easy win-win - an hour at church and a chance for the public to see them (whether in person or through the media).
I completely agree Charles and Camilla didn't often attend the Windsor church service on Easter Sunday as well. It was almost certainly less noted because we got to see a lot of them before and after it.
This year I think it does look a bit bad that William was happy to fly to Paris for football leaving his wife and 2 of his 3 children behind but when it comes to Easter Sunday they can't because "it's family time". I am all for family time and have said before how valuable that will prove to be in the future when we have in George a king who was raised in a relatively stable, normal, loving family, but when neatly all your time is family time, it can't always be the reason for not doing things you don't want to and be overlooked when it is things you do want to do.

That said, is it the end of the world? Of course not. We'll just have to spend the run up to Easter Sunday guessing which outfit from 30+ years ago Anne decides to pull out the back of her closest rather than what new outfit Catherine pulls from hers.

 

[sophie25]

It's only 45 minutes to an hour in church, I fail to see how that interferes with family life.

 

[Somebody]

Attending Easter Sunday service is not a royal engagement (and not seen as such by the BRF as it is not in the CC). In most other royal families attending church is a completely private activity; somehow people started 'attending' the 'walk to/from church' in the UK at some point but that doesn't make it into a royal engagement. So, for those who are spending time together over the Easter Weekend it of course makes sense to go to church together but those that spend their Easter elsewhere won't join.

 

[Iluvbertie]

3. If you don't already have an allegiance to a team, you can become a fan of a team that a friend or family member is passionate about. My brother is a huge Arsenal supporter and I started out watching matches with him purely as a way to spend more time with him and understand something he loved so much. Twenty years later, I think I'm an even more fanatical Arsenal supporter than he is. I can definitely relate if that's how William's friends have come to support Villa. Indeed, that's the way William himself became a supporter:

I can totally relate to that. Almost all my sporting teams are the same ones that my brother supported - St George in the NRL, Arsenal in English soccer, St Helens in English Rugby League, Sydney University in the Sydney Rugby Union comp (he actually played for them at 5th grade level as an undergrad).

Last year at his funeral his scarves from all those teams were placed on his coffin, along with some other related memorabilia.

Family and friends are often the way 'into' following a team. I have a friend who is a supporter of Bayern Munich and although I am not a big soccer fan I will watch matches with him when I am at his place (don't have access at mine as I don't subscribe to a service that covers European football).

 

[Iluvbertie]

Attending Easter Sunday service is not a royal engagement (and not seen as such by the BRF as it is not in the CC). In most other royal families attending church is a completely private activity; somehow people started 'attending' the 'walk to/from church' in the UK at some point but that doesn't make it into a royal engagement. So, for those who are spending time together over the Easter Weekend it of course makes sense to go to church together but those that spend their Easter elsewhere won't join.

My only issue with Willaim and George not attending is that they are both future Supreme Governors of the Church of England and Easter Sunday is a mandatory Sunday to attend church and, if confirmed, take communion in the CoE (I am a practising CoE and actually asked my minister if this was still the case as I left our Maundy Thursday service last night and he confirmed it is). I don't care where they go but I would expect them both to attend church on Easter Sunday and there are a number of churches where they can go.

 

[Somebody]

I would indeed hope (and somewhat expect - although unlike previous generations the family does not regularly attend Sunday services) that they attend an Easter service but that doesn’t have to be the one that Charles attends.

N.B. I didn’t know Australia also has churches that are part of the CoE. Isn’t there an Australian Anglican Church instead?

 

[CrownPrincessJava]

I would indeed hope (and somewhat expect - although unlike previous generations the family does not regularly attend Sunday services) that they attend an Easter service but that doesn’t have to be the one that Charles attends.

N.B. I didn’t know Australia also has churches that are part of the CoE. Isn’t there an Australian Anglican Church instead?

It's the Anglican Church of Australia, which is under the Anglican Communion.

I'm glad William and Catherine are taking time to spend Easter away. If Charles doesn't mind, why should we?

 

[Iluvbertie]

I would indeed hope (and somewhat expect - although unlike previous generations the family does not regularly attend Sunday services) that they attend an Easter service but that doesn’t have to be the one that Charles attends.

N.B. I didn’t know Australia also has churches that are part of the CoE. Isn’t there an Australian Anglican Church instead?

Australia was a British colony so of course we have CoE churches here. It is the second largest Christian denomination. Only one with more is the Roman Catholic due largely to the number of Irish migrants. When I grew up in the 60s and 70s every suburb had both a Roman Catholic and CoE church and maybe one other. The town where I grew up had, and still has, both a Roman Catholic church and a CoE. It used to have a Methodist and Presbyterian but they have both shut now and the adherents of those denominations have to go to the city up the road - that has both a CoE and RC cathedral. My suburb has a CoE church that conducts its services in Vietnamese and Mandarin but not in English. I have to go a couple of suburbs for that, and that church also runs services in Vietnamese and is looking to add a service in Arabic in a couple of months - which will be interesting considering it is in the heart of the area of Sydney most associated with the Islamic community as it will be between two of the largest mosques in the southern hemisphere - one at Lakemba and one at Auburn (called the Gallipoli Mosque as it was set up by Turks).

The royals, when visiting Sydney, usually go to church at St Andrew's Anglican cathedral. Charles and Camilla didn't last year but on previous visits have done so and William and Catherine went there in 2014 before taking George to the zoo.

 

[Somebody]

It's the Anglican Church of Australia, which is under the Anglican Communion.

I'm glad William and Catherine are taking time to spend Easter away. If Charles doesn't mind, why should we?

Thanks. That’s what I thought. CoE and Anglican are not one and the same. The CoE only exists in England. The Anglican Communion, however, is worldwide and includes many different national and regional churches/provinces; and I am not surprised that the Anglican Church of Australia is the second largest denomination.

 

[oldetonian]

It is disappointing because it feels like we don't get to see them all that much and the Easter Sunday church appearance is a nice easy win-win - an hour at church and a chance for the public to see them (whether in person or through the media).
I completely agree Charles and Camilla didn't often attend the Windsor church service on Easter Sunday as well. It was almost certainly less noted because we got to see a lot of them before and after it.
This year I think it does look a bit bad that William was happy to fly to Paris for football leaving his wife and 2 of his 3 children behind but when it comes to Easter Sunday they can't because "it's family time". I am all for family time and have said before how valuable that will prove to be in the future when we have in George a king who was raised in a relatively stable, normal, loving family, but when neatly all your time is family time, it can't always be the reason for not doing things you don't want to and be overlooked when it is things you do want to do.

That said, is it the end of the world? Of course not. We'll just have to spend the run up to Easter Sunday guessing which outfit from 30+ years ago Anne decides to pull out the back of her closest rather than what new outfit Catherine pulls from hers.

My only issue with Willaim and George not attending is that they are both future Supreme Governors of the Church of England and Easter Sunday is a mandatory Sunday to attend church and, if confirmed, take communion in the CoE (I am a practising CoE and actually asked my minister if this was still the case as I left our Maundy Thursday service last night and he confirmed it is). I don't care where they go but I would expect them both to attend church on Easter Sunday and there are a number of churches where they can go.

Charles didn’t attend Easter Service as heir .

 

[Alison H]

As far as family time goes, it would be nice for the children to spend part of the Bank Holiday weekend with their grandparents, but I appreciate that the Royals are in a unique situation - they can't really go out for a picnic together, which is the sort of thing we used to do with our grandparents when we were kids.

 

[Hallo girl]

As far as family time goes, it would be nice for the children to spend part of the Bank Holiday weekend with their grandparents, but I appreciate that the Royals are in a unique situation - they can't really go out for a picnic together, which is the sort of thing we used to do with our grandparents when we were kids.

They are possibly spending it with the other grand parents, William has always been happy to spend time with the Middleton family.

 

[Elly C]

I hadn’t realised that Charles didn’t attend the Easter services on a regular basis before he became monarch. I’m sure the King is fully supportive of his son’s desire to hold on to these precious early years for private family time.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s an Easter themed release of some kind from Kensington Palace to help placate our wishes to see the family together. It won’t better seeing the family all together at the Easter service of course.

 

[Hallo girl]

I hadn’t realised that Charles didn’t attend the Easter services on a regular basis before he became monarch. I’m sure the King is fully supportive of his son’s desire to hold on to these precious early years for private family time.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s an Easter themed release of some kind from Kensington Palace to help placate our wishes to see the family together. It won’t better seeing the family all together at the Easter service of course.

All we really know is that Charles did not always attend the Windsor service, William might be going down that route. There are other churches.

 

[RabbitRabbit]

Could be a security choice, he may visit elsewhere or they have some family time planned. Lots of reasons, up to them. Would be good to have Harry back and visible and Yorks out of sight.