Where is the chapel used for King Charles' Christmas speech and can you visit?
By ITV News Producer Hannah Ward-Glenton
In a break from tradition, this year the monarch's Christmas message was delivered from Fitzrovia Chapel, a former London hospital chapel.
Broadcast on Christmas Day, the King's message included references to his and the Princess of Wales' cancer journeys, offering his “heartfelt thanks” to the medical teams who supported him and his family “through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness”.
The annual address is typically given from one of the royal residences, such as Buckingham Palace last year and Windsor Castle in 2022, but in keeping with the King’s desire to go out into the community, he tasked the team organising the broadcast to find a site away from the royal estate.
So why was the chapel chosen, and can you visit it?
Where is the chapel?
The chapel is in Pearson Square in Fitzrovia, central London.
It is a few minutes’ walk from Oxford Street, Europe’s busiest shopping destination, but offers a tranquil space and is a popular wedding venue and arts exhibition site.
Why was the chapel chosen?
The King gave his team a criteria the building for his Christmas message had to fulfil, including having health connections, a strong community presence and providing all faiths and none a place of solace and reflection.
They discovered the Grade II-listed building in central London which has Byzantine-inspired architecture and is richly decorated in a Gothic revival style featuring marble and more than 500 stars in a gold leaf ceiling.
Charles picked the chapel without visiting and was left “absolutely bowled over” by its beauty, a source told the PA news agency.
Carla Whalen, chair of the Fitzrovia Chapel Foundation’s board of trustees, said about the filming: “I assume that this space being one of calm reflection, but also thinking about health, about care, about the medical profession, would make it a pretty apt choice.”
Ms Whalen said of the king's arrival: “He was pretty surprised and kind of delighted, as far as I can tell, from coming in and discovering it.
“He was very interested in the marble, there’s 40 types of marble here and lots of different designs and he wanted to learn about the history of the chapel and some of the people who are commemorated here.”
Charles recorded his message on December 11, one of the rare times a building outside the royal estate has been used.
The last time a non-royal building was used was when the late Queen Elizabeth II recorded her message at Southwark Cathedral in 2006 and at Combermere Barracks in Windsor three years earlier.
Can you visit Fitzrovia Chapel?
The public are able to visit Fitzrovia Chapel.
It is open most Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and one Sunday each month, with hours varying depending on the time of year.
What is the history of the Chapel?
Fitzrovia Chapel was originally built as part of Middlesex Hospital as a space for peace, prayer and reflection.
Construction on the chapel started in 1891, and in the same year it hosted its first service on Christmas Day. Its official opening ceremony took place in June of the following year.
The chapel took more than 25 years to complete and includes more than 40 types of marble in the finished design.
Middlesex Hospital was demolished in 1924 as the building was declared structurally unsafe, and was later rebuilt.
The Chapel was preserved throughout the process.
Princess Diana opened the Broderip and Charles Bell Wards of Middlesex Hospital in 1987. They were the first in the United Kingdom dedicated to the treatment and care of patients with AIDS and HIV-related illnesses.
The hospital was demolished for good in 2008, but again the chapel was preserved, becoming a Grade II-listed building. It was then given its current name: Fitzrovia Chapel.
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