Princess Charlotte made headlines during the royal family’s annual Christmas Day walk to church at Sandringham after she agreed to take a selfie with a member of the public.
The moment, shared on TikTok, showed the 10-year-old pausing to greet well-wishers and briefly falling behind her family as she chatted. While selfies with royals were once treated as a firm etiquette no-no, royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams says the approach has changed in recent years, with the royal family occasionally making exceptions.
Princess Charlotte Christmas Walk Selfie at Sandringham Goes Viral
For the second year in a row, Princess Charlotte joined her parents, Prince William and Kate Middleton, and brothers Prince George and Prince Louis in a Christmas Day walk to St. Mary Magdalene Church. Along the way, Charlotte stopped to greet people lining the path, accepting small gifts and chatting briefly with well-wishers.
In the TikTok, a member of the public asked, “Can we have a photo with you?” Charlotte replied, “Yes,” and stepped over to take the selfie. As she paused, Prince William could be heard calling her name. “I’m coming,” Charlotte responded before quickly rejoining her family.
It was the second year in a row Princess Charlotte has been spotted taking a selfie during the Christmas walk, which is one of the royal family’s most photographed and closely watched annual traditions.
Prince Louis received a large chocolate egg from a well-wisher, and Prince George stopped to chat with people in the crowd, including a moment in which he discussed his late grandmother, Princess Diana.
Charlotte also drew attention for a polished look that closely echoed her mother’s style. She wore a taupe Catherine Walker coat with dark brown trim on the collar and pockets, paired with a red dress underneath and dark tights—an outfit that prompted comparisons to a similar look her mother wore years earlier for one of her earliest royal public appearances.
Royal Protocol on Selfies Has Relaxed, According to a Royal Expert
Royal etiquette has historically discouraged selfies with senior royals, but Fitzwilliams explained to Reader’s Digest that the rule has softened. “Selfies with royals would have been an etiquette faux pas until not long ago,” he told Reader’s Digest. “But things have started to relax in recent years, and we’ve seen the royal family break protocol with this rule now and then.”
Fitzwilliams also made it clear that the default expectation is still no, unless there is a specific context that makes an exception appropriate. “It’s something that is not done generally unless there’s a specific reason for the picture,” he said. “In that case, the royals might make an exception.”
For instance, Prince William has posed for selfies in recent years, including one of the most-viewed in the past few years. Taylor Swift, one can only assume with royal permission, shared a selfie of herself, the future King of England, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Travis Kelce from her sold-out shows ar Wembley Stadium.
The photo highlighted how the royal family has softened some long-standing protocol, with Prince William increasingly setting the tone for a more approachable future.
