Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla to read extracts of Charles Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol, to royal fans, over the festive period

The royal couple will also be joined by some famous faces over the 12 days of Christmas on Instagram

Charles and Camilla smiling
(Image credit: Chris Jackson-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

If you're not already in the Christmas spirit the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall are here to helpby reading extracts of a classic tale, A Christmas Carol, to us via Instagram. 


The royal couple, who will spend Christmas day with the Queen, will read the extracts of the well-known story, via the Duchesses reading room Instagram page over the 12 days of Christmas—with Prince Charles starting the reading on Christmas day.

The couple announced the lovely surprise on Instagram, with a video explaining why they would be reading the classic tale and a note which says, "The Reading Room is delighted to announce that over the Twelve Days of Christmas, we will be reading, with the help of some very special friends, Charles Dickens’ wonderful story, ‘A Christmas Carol’."

The video, which has had nearly 14,000 views, starts with Camilla, sitting in front of a roaring fire and Christmas decorations, explaining, "A Christmas Carol is a story which in so many ways began Christmas as we know it today. It follows themes of love, kindness, compassion and tolerance, and it speaks to the heart."

While the Instagram post goes on to say, "In collaboration with the @dickensmuseum, we will bring you extracts of the book read by Their Royal Highnesses, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall; as well as some of our greatest actors, including Miriam Margolyes, Paterson Joseph, Sir Derek Jacobi, Simon Callow, Stephen Mangan and Bridgette Amofah."

If you want to follow the story with them, as they read it, the Dickens museum has also made a PDF version of ‘A Christmas Carol’ via their website.

Camilla, started her book club in January this year, and it has since been praised by the likes of Judi Dench. The Duchess is the patron of several literary organizations and has previously spoken about her love of reading.

The royal will be spending Christmas with her husband and the Queen - after Princess Anne's husband tested positive for Covid 19.

They will no doubt spend the day remembering Prince Philip - who passed away earlier this year. The Queen, who is set to pay tribute to her late husband in her Christmas Day speech, cancelled her Christmas plans in Sandringham this year.

Sarah Finley

Sarah is a freelance journalist - writing about the royals and celebrities for Woman & Home, fitness and beauty for the Evening Standard and how the world of work has changed due to the pandemic for the BBC. 

 

She also covers a variety of other subjects and loves interviewing leaders and innovators in the beauty, travel and wellness worlds for numerous UK and overseas publications. 

 

As a journalist, she has written thousands of profile pieces - interviewing CEOs, real-life case studies and celebrities - interviewing everyone from Emma Bunton to the founder of Headspace.