Why did Princess Anne have to cancel engagements in Northern Ireland at the last minute?
The Princess Royal apologised after missing two engagements in Northern Ireland
When it comes to the royal family, the headlines in recent days have been dominated by the reconciliation between Prince Harry and his father King Charles. The father and son met at Clarence House, but before this meeting, they last saw one another 19 months ago when Prince Harry returned to the UK after being told the news about the monarch’s cancer diagnosis.
After royal aides for Prince Harry and King Charles met one another earlier in the summer, there were hopes that the monarch and his youngest son would be able to meet soon, but no details were known until the meeting actually took place at Clarence House earlier this week.
Prince Harry was in the UK for four days and has just made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital of Kiyev. Prince Harry was invited by the Ukrainian government and travelled there to help with the recovery of military personnel who have been seriously injured in the war with Russia.
Whilst the attention has been focused on Prince Harry when it comes to the royal headlines, King Charles’s sister Princess Anne has apologised after being forced to cancel two engagements that she was due to attend in Northern Ireland on Wednesday September 10, the events were in Holywood and south Belfast.
The reason why Princess Anne had to cancel the engagements at the last minute was because of technical problems with the aircraft in which she was due to travel. A spokesperson for the Princess Royal said she apologised "to any who were disappointed or inconvenienced as a result of the technical issues".
In February 2025, the Princess Royal visited Southmead Hospital in Bristol where she thanked medics for looking after her. Princess Anne was treated at the hospital for five days in June 2024 after suspected head injury from a horse.
King Charles released a statement at the time which read: "The King has been kept closely informed and joins the whole Royal Family in sending his fondest love and well-wishes to the Princess for a speedy recovery."
At the time, the Princess Royal was due to travel to Canada, but the visit had to be postponed. She was also expected to attend the Japanese State visit to the UK, but had to pull out.
Despite having to stay in hospital for five days in 2024, Princess Anne still carried out 217 engagements that year and has often been dubbed ‘the hardest-working royal.’