Princess Beatrice's Royal Wedding Will Differ from Kate, Meghan and Eugenie's Nuptials in a Big Way
Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi will tie the knot in 2020 — but it will be a more low-key affair than other recent royal weddings.
Royal fans were able to watch every magical moment, from the walk down the aisle to the couple’s first kiss, on television for the nuptials of Kate Middleton and Prince William in April 2011, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry in May 2018 and Beatrice’s younger sister Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank in Oct. 2018. However, both ITV and BBC have announced they won’t be broadcasting live for Princess Beatrice’s “I dos.”
Beatrice and Edoardo announced their engagement in September, after the Italian property developer popped the question during a trip to Italy earlier in the month. However, those close to the Queen’s granddaughter previously told PEOPLE that the 31-year-old royal may go for a less extravagant affair than her younger sister’s royal nuptials at Windsor Castle last year.
“She has talked about having a smaller affair in the past,” a friend said.
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“Beatrice and Eugenie are super close, but they are very different,” another source adds. “Beatrice is more serious and Eugenie is the outgoing extrovert, she’s so bubbly and fun. Beatrice is more reserved and discreet. She holds back more, she is very polite, very well-educated but more formal and quiet in her personalty, so I think it will be a very different wedding to Eugenie’s.”
The couple celebrated their engagement party in London in December alongside several friends, the bride-to-be’s mother Sarah Ferguson and sister Eugenie.
“They were really happy to be surrounded by all their friends,” a friend of the couple told PEOPLE. “They spent the time going around the room making sure they said hello everyone.”
Beatrice’s father Prince Andrew, however, was absent from the event. Andrew likely skipped the party, which was thrown by Mozzi’s mother at Chiltern Firehouse, due to the ongoing controversy surrounding his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
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A source tells PEOPLE that the couple’s wedding plans are underway, and Prince Andrew will likely play a major part in his daughter’s wedding despite the scandal surrounding his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that caused him to “step back” from his royal duties.
“I definitely think he will walk her down the aisle,” a source tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “He plays a very traditional role in her life. She’s his greatest supporter.”
“This is obviously very hard times,” adds the insider.
