Charles III will be crowned King, alongside the Queen Consort, on Saturday May 6 by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Only a feel people received an invitation, with even the Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, being snubbed from Westminster Abbey guest list.
But there will be plenty of opportunity to watch the historic event from the comfort of your sofa, be it in the UK or overseas.
The BBC, ITV and Sky will broadcast live from the ceremony, while US broadcasters CNN, CBS and Fox News will also be covering the event from the Abbey.
Here is how broadcasters will be covering the Coronation of King Charles III this weekend.
BBC
The Coronation on Saturday 6 May will be the centrepiece of live coverage with ceremonial events including the Westminster Abbey service broadcast across the BBC. The British Broadcaster has waived its licensing fee to allow venues such as village halls and churches to screen the live coronation ceremony coverage on May 6 and the coronation concert on May 7 without having to purchase a TV licence.
A live broadcast will cover all of the ceremonial events as they unfold throughout the day, from the early military movements to the formal processions in the lead up to the Westminster Abbey service.
You can watch coverage of The Coronation of King Charles III on BBC One, BBC Two and BBC iPlayer from 7.30am on Saturday 6 May 2023.
Coverage begins with ‘The Coronation of HM The King: The Preparation’ and is followed by coverage of ‘The Coronation of HM The King: The Coronation’ from 10.15am. ‘The Coronation of HM The King: The Celebration’ will air from 1pm. These programmes will be broadcast on both BBC One and BBC Two with sign language available on BBC Two.
The BBC will provide an extensive network of cameras to give audiences a front row seat on the ceremonial route from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey. Bespoke commentary, starting with the atmosphere on the streets of London as the street-liners take position, will set the scene for the departure of Their Majesties The King and The Queen Consort from Buckingham Palace.
ITV
A special programme, ‘News King Charles III: The Coronation’ will be broadcast live from 8.30am to 3pm on Saturday 6th May giving viewers on ITV1 and ITVX a close up view of all the events of Coronation Day. Presenters Julie Etchingham and Tom Bradby will guide viewers through a day of pageantry and celebration. The ITV team including Mary Nightingale, Nina Hossain, Charlene White and James Mates will be at the key locations ensuring viewers don’t miss a moment during six and a half hours of live, uninterrupted coverage.
The major live event programme produced by ITV News will be the centrepiece of a week of special ITV coverage.
Sky
On Sky News, which is available via Freeview channel 233, Sky channel 501, Virgin 603 and BT 313, coronation day coverage will kick off at 6am on Saturday 6 May.
Journalist Kay Burley will be live from Westminster Abbey as the troops who will take part in the coronation start to take up their positions and from 9am, Anna Botting will be live from Buckingham Palace in the build-up to the ceremony, including the procession to Westminster Abbey.
The ceremony will officially start at 11am, followed by the procession back to Buckingham Palace which begins at around 1pm.
The Royal Family are expected on the palace balcony in the early afternoon for the fly-past, which will be broadcast live.
Also on Saturday, Sky presenter Mark Austin will reflect on the proceedings from Buckingham Palace between 5-8pm, followed by Gillian Joseph taking a look at highlights of the Coronation of Charles III and how the day was marked around the country from 8pm.
Sky coverage will wrap up with a special King Charles III Coronation highlights hour between 9-10pm. During its Saturday coverage of the Coronation the broadcaster will remove ad breaks between 9am-3pm on Sky News.
You can also stream for free on the Sky News website or app and on the Sky News YouTube channel.
How to watch the King Charles Coronation from outside the UK
For those outside the UK will be able to watch the Coronation of King Charles III on the BBC News channel, or listen on the BBC World Service. Major American networks will also be in town to broadcast the event live.
Fox News
Fox News’ live coverage of King Charles III’s coronation will start Saturday at 5 a.m. ET, and be led by anchor and executive editor of The Story, Martha MacCallum, alongside Fox & Friends co-host Ainsley Earhardt and Fox Nation’s Piers Morgan.
Broadcasting from the Canada Gate at Buckingham Palace, the network’s live coverage will showcase the coronation ceremony as the Church of England formally transfers the title and power to King Charles III and his wife, Queen Consort Camilla.
ABC
ABC News will present special coverage of the historic coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Saturday, May 6, beginning at 5 a.m. EDT on ABC and streaming live on ABC News Live.
ABC News Digital and GMA Digital will have coverage throughout the week, leading up to the coronation, including a live blog, wall-to-wall coverage of the big events, royal family moments, and the fashion from the historic day.
CBS News
Coverage on CBS will begin Saturday, May 6 at at 5 a.m. ET and run until 10 a.m. ET.
CBS Saturday Morning co-hosts Michelle Miller, Dana Jacobson and Jeff Glor will co-anchor coronation coverage from London on the CBS Television Network, CBS News Streaming Network, and streaming on Paramount+.
CNN
The Coronation of King Charles III airs Saturday, May 6 from 5 a.m. ET – Noon ET on CNN, CNN International and CNN en Español.
Anchor Anderson Cooper will lead a special live coverage of The Coronation of King Charles III on Saturday, May 6 beginning at 5 a.m. ET outside Buckingham Palace with analysis and reporting from CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and London-based journalist Max Foster.
The Coronation of King Charles III will also be available online on CNN.com and via CNN’s apps for iOS and Android. It can also be viewed on CNN apps for Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, Chromecast and Android TV.
King Charles III, 74, automatically took the throne following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday 8 September 2022. He also acts as head of state in 14 realms – including Australia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Canada and Jamaica.
The Coronation will start at 11am in the UK, which is 8pm AEST.
The last coronation in the United Kingdom was that of Queen Elizabeth II, which took place on June 2, 1953, at Westminster Abbey in London. Although Coronations have been held at Westminster Abbey for 900 years, Elizabeth II’s ceremony was a historic event also for being the first ever to be televised – a broadcast that was watched by 27 million people in the UK alone, and many more millions of people worldwide.