The BBC has sparked outrage with the decision to axe the live broadcast of next week’s Commonwealth Day service for the first time in 37 years.
The service, which celebrates collaboration as the defining strength of the modern family of nations, is one of the highlights of the royal calendar and has been shown live from Westminster Abbey every year since 1989, apart from 2021 due to the pandemic.
This year, it will be attended by senior royals, including King Charles, Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales and Princess Anne.
The broadcaster will show an episode of Escape to the Country on BBC One instead, citing “funding challenges” as the reason behind the decision.
Royal expert Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, told The Sun: ‘It’s a ridiculous and appalling decision. The BBC has been doing it for years, and it’s the most important date in the diary for celebrating the Commonwealth.
“If even the BBC doesn’t think it’s worthy to cover and celebrate despite its huge cultural significance for member states and the monarchy, then the Commonwealth could fade into irrelevance with every passing year.’
Last year, Prince William and the Princess of Wales joined King Charles and Queen Camilla at the service. Kate and Charles had not attended the event in 2024 after they were diagnosed with cancer.
A BBC spokesperson told HELLO!: “Our decision not to broadcast the Commonwealth Day Ceremony in the same way we’ve done in previous years reflects the difficult choices we have to make in light of our funding challenges. We can confirm BBC News plans to cover the service across its platforms, including the BBC One bulletins and rolling news channel.”
Commonwealth service 2026
The upcoming Commonwealth Service is set to be the royal family’s most high-profile event to date following the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor last month. The King and Queen and senior members of the royal family will attend the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey.
Charles and Camilla will be joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Princess Royal and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, and 1,800 guests at the annual event.
© Getty ImagesThe March 9 service will also include an address from Royal Commonwealth Society ambassador Geri Halliwell-Horner, a reflection from Oti Mabuse and a poem from Selina Tusitala Marsh, the inaugural Commonwealth Poet Laureate. As head of the Commonwealth, Charles issues an annual message to the 56 member-nations, which will hold their biennial Commonwealth meeting this year during the first week of November in the capital of Antigua and Barbuda.
Inspired by the meeting’s theme – accelerating partnerships and investment for a prosperous commonwealth – the service will celebrate collaboration as the defining strength of the modern family of nations. Among the congregation will be Commonwealth high commissioners, Government representatives, young people and leading voices from the creative community.
The service will feature landmark artistic moments, including the world premiere of the Commonwealth Symphony, composed by Rekesh Chauhan, and a bespoke dance collaboration between the Royal Ballet School and Sapnay Entertainments, uniting classical ballet and Bollywood in a powerful expression of cross-cultural partnership.
Other performers include a Scottish ceilidh band, the Melodians Steel Orchestra and further special reflections and readings from guests.
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