Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank’s October 12th wedding is just around the corner – but before you bust out the bunting for your royal wedding viewing party there seems to be a right royal headache surrounding the actual broadcasting of it.
According to a new report published in the Mail On Sunday over the weekend, Princess Eugenie’s father Prince Andrew is working behind-the-scenes to get one of the British channels to pick up the rights to his daughter’s big day after the BBC reportedly rejected it over fears it would be a ratings flop.
The British outlet claims the 58-year-old was trying to secure a deal with the BBC but he’s since set his sights on UK channel ITV after BBC‘s snub.
“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.”
“The feeling at the Palace is that the BBC has dropped the ball. At the end of the day this is going to be a huge Royal Wedding, with all the senior members of the Royal Family in attendance. But nobody wants to take the risk and spend the money it would cost to put it on air,” the insider added.
So far, Sky News is the only British channel covering the event with the station rumoured to be playing highlight snippets throughout the day.
WATCH: Flashback to Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson’s engagement interview. Post continues…
After his negotiations with the BBC reportedly fell flat, Prince Andrew is now trying to get ITV to broadcast Princess Eugenie’s wedding.
Indeed, Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank’s A-list guest list is shaping up to rival that of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s with names like Rande Gerber, Cindy Crawford, Ellie Goudling, George and Amal Clooney and Cressida Bonas tipped to attend.
And if that’s not enough to get TV execs over the line, the Windsor-based wedding itself is going to be one hell of a spectacle with experts estimating the glorious celebration will cost a whopping $AUD3.6 million.
Hamish Shephard, founder of wedding planning app Bridebook.co.uk, crunched the numbers for Daily Mail, analysing over 170,000 weddings and reviewing over 70,000 industry suppliers’ price estimates listed on his wedding venue and supplier directory.
The biggest investments on the day include watertight security, catering to over 1000 guests and, according to Shephard, a luxury marquee alone could amount to over $150,000.
Sadly over the years, Prince Charles and Prince Andrew’s relationship has become quite complex.
This latest development would no doubt be a harsh blow to Princess Eugenie and her father, who has reportedly long felt he and his daughters play second fiddle to Prince Charles and his sons.
In the past, palace insiders have claimed Prince Andrew has asked The Queen and Prince Charles for his daughters’ roles to be upgraded to full-time working royals.
However last year, in an unprecedented and unusual move, Prince Andrew released a rare statement via social media denying the fevered reports Prince Charles refused to approve this plan.
“Over the past few weeks a number of stories have been run in various newspapers that have no basis in fact and the most recent, relating to my daughters, requires correction to terminate further speculation and innuendo,” Prince Andrew penned on Twitter.
“There is no truth to the story that there could be a split between the Prince of Wales and I over my daughters’ participation as Members of the Royal Family.”
For now, it’s unclear if ITV have signed on the dotted line but the Mail on Sunday report Prince Andrew wants Eugenie to enjoy the same fanfare as her cousin Prince Harry did back in May when he married Meghan Markle.
Princess Eugenie of York will marry Jack Brooksbank on Friday, October 12th.
Royal Weddings, in numbers
1st place: Prince Charles and Princess Diana with 28.4 million viewers
2nd place: Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson with 18.7 million viewers
3rd place: Prince William and Duchess Catherine with 17.6 million viewers
4th place: Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex with 14.8 viewers
5th place: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle with 11.5 million viewers
