King Charles was accused of putting ‘family over duty’ and ‘ancestry over optics’ during the royal family’s Christmas festivities after he allowed disgraced brother Prince Andrew to attend.

Writing for The Sun, royal commentator Clemmie Moodie highlighted how out-of-place the Duke of York seemed amongst other senior royals; Andrew has been forced to retire from royal duties after a sex abuse scandal.

As per Moodie: “Christmas is a time for peace and goodwill. Which is the only possible, rational, explanation for Prince Andrew’s return to the royal fold on Christmas Day.”

“As Andrew, cheeks puffed out and head down, shuffled around the grounds of the Sandringham estate… this was clearly a case of his older brother, King Charles, putting family before duty,” Moodie also stated.

She continued: “Andrew’s presence was the only duff note in the new King’s first Christmas Day at the helm. Last week, though, he (Charles) showed he isn’t afraid to get tough — barring his sibling from using Buckingham Palace as an office space.”

“To have kicked Andrew when he was down though, and banned him from the royal procession on December 25, isn’t Charles’s style. In short, he put ¬ancestry before optics. Many a family can relate. There’s always a black sheep somewhere down the genetic line,” Moodie concluded.