It’s been an unsettling few weeks for British royal watchers, unsure whether they’ll be able to witness Princess Eugenie walk down the aisle at her Royal wedding, scheduled to take place on Friday, October 12 after the BBC declined to broadcast the celebration.
But in recent days, it’s been announced that British broadcaster ITV will now televise the event in the UK.
Princess Eugenie with fiance and boyfriend of seven years Jack Brooksbank.
“ITV will provide coverage of the wedding of HRH Princess Eugenie of York and Mr Jack Brooksbank on 12 October in an extended This Morning special,” an official statement from the network said.
With Princess Eugenie set to walk down the aisle within days to marry her boyfriend of seven years, Jack Brooksbank, it was expected that the United Kingdom’s national broadcaster, the BBC, who televise all Royal weddings and ceremonies of significance, would be the inevitable broadcaster for the event.
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But just weeks out from Princess Eugenie’s big day, the BBC made the unprecedented decision to decline the opportunity to broadcast the wedding, citing fears the event would be a ratings flop for the UK’s public service broadcaster.
According to a recent Mail on Sunday report, this left the Royal father-of-the-bride, Prince Andrew scrambling to sell the rights to another British broadcaster to ensure his daughter’s wedding day be televised and celebrated as widely as his nephew Prince Harry‘s wedding to Meghan Markle in May.
“From the outset, the instruction from the very top was that Eugenie’s wedding must be televised,” a source explained to the Mail on Sunday.
“The BBC was approached because they have a special relationship with Buckingham Palace and a formula that works.
“But they turned it down because they don’t think enough people will tune in and that there isn’t enough support for the Yorks.”
Princess Eugenie’s wedding to Jack Brooksbank will take place at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on Friday, October 12. In attendance will be an A-list guest list expected to include celebrities such as Cindy Crawford, George and Amal Clooney, Rande Gerber and musician Ellie Goudling.
It’s expected that Princess Eugenie’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, and grandfather, Prince Phillip, will be in attendance, along with the rest of the Royal family.
However, it’s been reported widely that cousin William’s wife, Duchess Catherine, may be a no-show.
Kate’s sister, Pippa, is expected to give birth to her first child around the same time and, of course, she will want to be by Pippa’s side.
It has been reported that the daughter of British pop singer Robbie Williams, ‘Teddy’ Rose Williams, will be a flower girl at the wedding, along with Princess Eugenie’s second cousin, Princess Charlotte. Prince George is also expected to play the role of page boy and it has been confirmed that Eugenie’s sister, Princess Beatrice, will be her maid of honour.
Anxiety about the big day persists in Australia, with royal enthusiasts concerned that despite a new UK broadcaster taking on the coverage, a live broadcast of the wedding may still not take place in the Southern Hemisphere.
Social media has lit up with rumours and theories around which Australian network, if any, will now televise the Royal wedding this month.
Australia’s Seven Network, who dub themselves “Australia’s Royal Network“, previously promoted that they would indeed be covering Princess Eugenie’s Royal wedding as part of their forthcoming exclusive Queen of the World documentary but have not yet clarified if it will be a live broadcast*.
Because the UK broadcaster for the event is ITV, and not the BBC as it had been expected it would be, it’s probable Australia’s Seven Network is being forced to renegotiate for the broadcasting rights, leaving Australian coverage of the Royal Wedding under a cloud of uncertainty.
Whatever the outcome, you can be assured that the Now to Love team will be working into the night on Friday, October 12 to bring you extensive and rolling coverage of the big event, so be sure to check back here!
**Now To Love approached the Seven Network for confirmation but had not received a response at the time of publication*
