Prince Philip Missed This Year's Easter Service with the Royal Family

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published 1 April 2018

Just over a week ago, it was revealed that Prince Philip had been forced to cancel a rare public engagement as he was feeling unwell. And today, the Queen's husband was noticeably absent from the royal family's Easter celebration.

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According to the Evening Standard, Prince Philip has been "experiencing some trouble with his hip," which is why he has been forced to miss his recent royal engagements. The Queen's 96-year-old husband is usually active in public life, so his presence from the Easter church service is sorely missed.

Hello! previously reported that Prince Philip had been "expected to attend a ceremony at Windsor Castle... to formally hand over his role as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards to his son, Prince Andrew," but he canceled the appearance because of his health issues.

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Of course, Prince Philip officially stepped down from his public duties last summer, but is still known to attend public events with Queen Elizabeth II.

The Express reported that Prince Philip had been due to attend the Easter church service, along with members of his family including Prince William and Kate Middleton. The Express said, "According to a Buckingham Palace spokesperson the Duke of Edinburgh’s name was printed in the Order of Service 'weeks ago when it was hoped the Duke would be able to take part.'" Unfortunately, a spokesperson for the royal family said, "His Royal Highness has since decided not to attend."

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle also skipped this year's royal family Easter church service.

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Amy Mackelden is a contributing editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.