Prince George is set to miss out on bell ringing at Westminster Abbey

(Image credit: PA)

By Selina Maycock

published 7 July 2020

Prince George will have to find another way to ring in his birthday.

Prince George is set to miss out on the annual bell ringing to mark his seventh birthday
Every year the youngster is treated to special chiming at London's Westminster Abbey but this year will be silent
It comes as it's revealed Prince George has a nickname for his grandad Prince Charles and it’s adorable

Prince George is expected to miss out on hearing the bells traditionally chime to mark his seventh birthday.

Each year since his birth in 2013, the bells of Westminster abbey have sounded on his birthday to mark the occasion.

He is among a handful of young royals who experience this tradition each year on their special day.

A photo posted by on

But due to the ongoing world health crisis, Westminster Abbey remains closed which means the young prince, who is the eldest child of Kate, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William, will miss out this year.

Likewise, his siblings Prince Louis, two, and Princess Charlotte, six, missed out on the occasion.

The Queen, Prince Phillip and both William and Kate also failed to have the bells chiming for their birthdays as the famous abbey closed its doors to the public in late March, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the nation on lockdown to stop the spread of Coronavirus.

READ MORE: Kate Middleton reveals Prince George’s interesting lockdown obsession

The young prince is expected to celebrate his birthday on July 22 and although the bells won't chime this time it's likely that his mother Kate will still keep up with her birthday tradition in releasing an unseen photograph of the youngster to the public via their Kensington Royal Instagram page, like she did earlier this year with daughter Charlotte.

A photo posted by on

But outrage was caused earlier this year when it was confirmed that the bells would chime for Prince Andrew's 60th birthday, which fell before lockdown, despite the ongoing controversy which forced him to step down from public duties following a backlash about his friendship with convicted U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

A spokeswoman for the central London church previously confirmed for whom the bells usually toll. 'Westminster Abbey is a Royal Peculiar and the bells are rung for the birthdays of HM The Queen and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh; their children; and TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their children. There are no plans to change these arrangement.'

Selina is a Senior Family Writer for GoodtoKnow and has more than 16 years years of experience. She specialises in royal family news, including the latest activities of Prince George, Charlotte, Louis, Archie and Lilibet. She also covers the latest government, health and charity advice for families. Selina graduated from the University of Sheffield in 2006 with a degree in Journalism, and gained her NCTJ and NCE qualifications. During her career, she’s also written for Woman, Woman's Own, Woman&Home, and Woman's Weekly as well as Heat magazine, Bang Showbiz - and the Scunthorpe Telegraph. When she's not covering family news, you can find her exploring new countryside walking routes, catching up with friends over good food, or making memories (including award-winning scarecrows!)