King greets well-wishers after Sandringham church service

The King greeted well-wishers after attending church in Sandringham on Sunday.

Charles, dressed in a brown full-length coat and grey suit, smiled and waved at the small crowd gathered outside St Mary Magdalene Church on the Norfolk estate.

He was joined for the service by nephew Peter Phillips, the son of the Princess Royal, and his fiancee Harriet Sperling, as well as the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.

The King’s outing follows his appearance at the same church on Christmas Day, when he was joined by the Queen and other senior royals, including the Prince and Princess of Wales.

After the Christmas Day service, Charles, Camilla, William, Kate and their children chatted to crowds who lined their route back to Sandringham, with many wearing festive Santa hats, tinsel necklaces or reindeer antlers.

Kate chatted to dozens of the well-wishers for almost 20 minutes after most of the royal family had reached the house and was given armfuls of flowers, which were carried by police officers.

Missing from the outing was the disgraced Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, whose friendship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein proved his downfall and saw him stripped of his titles by his brother the King earlier this year.

His daughters spent Christmas with the King and other royals, rather than their father, with Princess Beatrice and husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Princess Eugenie and her spouse Jack Brooksbank joining the walk.

Also among the royals attending church on Christmas Day were the Princess Royal and husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, Anne’s daughter Zara Tindall and her husband Mike Tindall with their daughters, and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and their children.