The Together At Christmas event, which is being led by the Princess of Wales for the fifth time, is to take place at Westminster Abbey on December 5.
The Princess of Wales’s annual carol service will feature performances by singer songwriter Katie Melua, Cornish folk group Fisherman’s Friends and rising star Griff.
Kate will preside over the Together at Christmas service at Westminster Abbey, now in its fifth year, which will bring together 1,600 guests to celebrate love in all its forms – whether within families, through friendships, across communities or kindness between strangers.
For the first time an illustrator will be sketching snapshots of the atmosphere inside the Abbey, to capture moments as they happen on December 5.
The princess will be joined by husband the Prince of Wales, who will give a reading, and royal fans will be hoping their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis make an appearance alongside other members of the royal family.
Melua, Fisherman’s Friends and Griff will perform on a roster also featuring actress Hannah Waddingham and Dan Smith from pop rock band Bastille.
The service will celebrate individuals from across the UK who may have dedicated or volunteered their time to be present with others, led initiatives that bring people in their community together, or offered a helping hand to those around them.
During the event readings linked to the theme of love, compassion and connection will be delivered by Hollywood stars Kate Winslet and Chiwetel Ejiofor, comic Babatunde Aleshe and rising actor Joe Locke, with the speakers accompanied by pianist Paul Gladstone Reid.
Guests will see candles lit by people William and Kate have met in recent years and others taking part in the service which will also showcase the stories of some of those invited, who are helping to create a more caring and connected society.
They will be greeted by a festive display created by horticulturist Jamie Butterworth based on the importance of nature in our lives while the Royal Horticultural Society is set to donate wreaths made by their ambassadors, including Dame Mary Berry, and schoolchildren.
The congregation will be able to add their names to a “connection tree” symbolising the power of togetherness and the importance of moments of connection with one another.
The late Duchess of Kent’s charity Future Talent, which she co-founded to support musically gifted children from low-income backgrounds, will also feature during the service with a brass ensemble of eight teenagers playing as guests arrive.
Some 15 community carol services, held in places including the Coronation Street Visitor Centre, an arts centre in Newbury and a community farm in Gwent, are also set to take place across the UK with the same love and togetherness theme.
Armagh, Berkshire, Derbyshire, Dumfries, Dyfed, East Riding, Gwent, Greater Manchester, Isle of Wight, Lanarkshire, Nottinghamshire, Renfrewshire & Ayrshire, Suffolk, Wiltshire and Worcestershire are the locations for the community services which are to be hosted by lord-lieutenants and supported by The Royal Foundation.
The Westminster Abbey service is to air on ITV1 and ITVX on Christmas Eve and will be repeated on Christmas Day.
