William and Kate 'drop' BBC for their Christmas carol concert amid rare feud over documentary

Prince William and Kate Middleton dropped BBC for their Christmas carol concert and instead decided to get the special event at Westminster Abbey covered by ITV.

According to a report in Mail Online, the Christmas charity fundraiser was due to be aired by BBC, but the Duke and the Duchess of Cambridge changed their mind after the network released its documentary "The Princes and the Press." The programme, which invited a strong-worded joint statement from Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, and Kensington Palace, includes claims that Prince William's team released stories against his younger brother Prince Harry and sister-in-law Meghan Markle during their exit as working royals.

An industry insider said about the last-minute change in plans made by the Cambridges, "It was all arranged to be on BBC1 but it was switched in the last few days because of the terrible row over the documentary. And things are likely to get a lot worse between the Royal Family and the BBC before they get better as the second part of the documentary threatens to go further."

A TV industry source told The Sun that William and Kate's decision to drop the BBC for the Christmas concert coverage is a "real coup" for ITV. The insider explained, "It is a brand new format — the royals have never hosted a televised TV concert before. And to have the Duchess leading on it is a big deal."

"Naturally most royal programming goes automatically to the BBC as the national broadcaster. Now it looks like they will work more with ITV in the future," the source continued, adding that ITV was "surprised but delighted" by the recent developments.

"It will be a fantastic Christmas carol concert that will be TV gold for viewers at home," they said.

The change of network comes soon after reports that Buckingham Palace was planning to boycott BBC if the broadcaster does not offer them the right to respond to the allegations made in their new documentary. The programme featured a lawyer representing Meghan Markle, but only a written statement was flashed on the screen from the side of the Crown. Palace courtiers were also not shown the documentary before it was aired on Tuesday.