King Charles missed both nights of a milestone celebration for the ballet school he patronizes, and the unease that followed has turned to his health.
The Royal Ballet School’s 100th-anniversary celebrations ran across two evenings, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, and Friday, Oct. 9, and the 77-year-old monarch stayed away from both. A report on the missed appearances carries the headline “London society frets as King Charles skips major high-culture event.”
The unease is framed as being about the monarch’s health. Charles is the school’s official patron and had been expected to attend. No reason has been given for his absence, and Buckingham Palace has not commented.
Lady Sarah Chatto, the daughter of Princess Margaret and president of both the Royal Ballet School and Birmingham Royal Ballet, represented the royal family at the back-to-back events. Former Prime Minister Sir John Major attended, along with figures from the ballet and art worlds. The Thursday program paired a reception with a performance at the Royal Opera House in London; the Friday event was a black-tie gala dinner.
Camilla and William Pick Up Dates
The absence unsettled London society, and royal insiders began asking questions about the king’s upcoming engagements. Engagements committed to months ago are being rearranged so that Camilla, Prince William, Princess Kate and other royals can step in.
Unnamed sources are behind talk of a lighter royal diary. Buckingham Palace has not been cited as confirming any reduction of the king’s engagements.
His public schedule has continued through 2026. The Zoological Society of London marked its 200th anniversary on July 9 with the king present, official trips took him to Washington, D.C., and Bermuda in late April and early May, and he opened a new session of the Welsh parliament in Cardiff on Thursday, Oct. 15. There, he and Camilla were met by protesters at the Senedd chanting “Not my King!” and “Down, down, down with the Crown,” with signs reading “Abolish the monarchy” and “Down with the Crown.” His autumn calendar is not empty either: a weeklong Caribbean tour with Camilla starts Oct. 27, taking in Antigua, the Bahamas and Guyana, and the couple are expected at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua from Nov. 1 to Nov. 4.
Windsor Stands In for Buckingham Palace
King Charles hosted Sultan Haitham bin Tarik at Windsor Castle, where a state banquet filled St George’s Hall on the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 20. The castle took the event because Buckingham Palace is undergoing renovations. The visit is the first by an Omani ruler to the U.K. in more than four decades; the last was by Sultan Qaboos bin Said in March 1982.
The Duchess of Edinburgh, Sophie, 61, joined the daytime ceremonial program with Prince Edward. She did not attend the banquet.
Treatment Moved to a “Precautionary Phase”
Buckingham Palace announced on Feb. 5, 2024, that Charles had been diagnosed with a form of cancer, a finding that came after a procedure to treat an enlarged prostate. In December 2025, the king disclosed that his cancer treatment would be scaled back in 2026.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said at the time of that disclosure: “His Majesty has responded exceptionally well to treatment, and his doctors advise that ongoing measures will now move into a precautionary phase.” The spokesperson added: “This position will be continuously monitored and reviewed to protect and prioritize his continued recovery.”
Kate has made a gradual return to public engagements after preventative chemotherapy.
Dame Ninette’s Legacy Onstage
Dame Ninette de Valois founded the school in 1926 as the Academy of Choreographic Art, and it went on to train dancers for the Vic-Wells Ballet, forerunner of today’s Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet. The reigning monarch has served as patron since 1956, when the school received a Royal Charter.
Princess Margaret’s death opened the school’s presidency to Charles, then Prince of Wales, who took the role in 2003. Students danced for him at Buckingham Palace in 2012 and again at a Royal Opera House performance held in honor of his 70th birthday. The school announced on June 3, 2024, that he had accepted the patronage once held by Queen Elizabeth II. Anna Birkett, interim chairman, said the school valued its “continued close association ahead of the School’s historic centenary in 2026.”
A short run of gala performances in honor of the school launched the Royal Ballet’s autumn season at the Royal Opera House. A suite from de Valois’ “Checkmate,” danced by students alongside company dancers, opened the program, followed by Frederick Ashton’s “Birthday Offering,” the Black Swan pas de deux from “Swan Lake” and the bedroom pas de deux from “Manon.” Christopher Wheeldon’s “Beautiful Shadow” received its world premiere, danced by Lauren Cuthbertson and Lukas B. Brændsrød in costumes by Erdem Moralioglu, and Cathy Marston’s “Night Falling” also premiered. Marianela Nuñez, Anna Rose O’Sullivan and Yasmine Naghdi danced, and Valentino Zucchetti choreographed a closing finale in which students shared the stage with dancers from both companies.
The Jewish Chronicle’s dance critic, Joy Sable, awarded the evening four stars; her review appeared Oct. 9. “I hope Dame Ninette was looking down from above,” she wrote.
