Show of unity: Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie and their mother Sarah Ferguson attend financier Tim Hoare's memorial service as family braces for shamed Prince Andrew's showdown with Prince Charles

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Prince Andrew's family attended a funeral without him yesterday as the Royal Family braced themselves for Prince Charles to hold talks with his brother.

Sarah, Duchess of York and her daughters Princess Beatrice and Eugenie were at the service at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge in London for the late financier Tim Hoare.

Prince Charles is expected to hold talks with his younger brother in London this week after his return to Britain this morning following his tour of the South Pacific. 

Charles and Andrew will have a showdown at Clarence House after the Duke of York's disastrous interview about his friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. 

Prince William, who was holding an investiture ceremony, and the Queen's third son Prince Andrew were also photographed arriving at Buckingham Palace this morning. 

Sarah, Duchess of York and Eugenie (far right) at St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge yesterday

Princess Beatrice (left) also arrives at church with her mother Sarah and sister Eugenie (right)

Andrew will 'stand back' from his charity patronages in a sign of his humiliation over the Epstein scandal following the BBC Newsnight programme on November 16.

Aides to the Duke said he would step aside temporarily, but sources suggested Charles and nephew Prince William would oppose any future return to royal duties.   

Charles has allegedly been angered by how the row has overshadowed his visit to the South Pacific with Camilla which saw him highlight climate change issues.

Sarah and Beatrice were said to have cautioned Andrew against doing the interview, while his then private secretary Amanda Thirsk was more keen on him taking part. 

The Duchess of York and Eugenie remember the late financier Tim Hoare in London yesterday

Sarah is welcomed outside the church while arriving with her daughter Princess Eugenie

A friend told the Daily Mail: 'Princess Beatrice and Sarah both advised Andrew against going ahead with the interview. However, he paid too much attention to Amanda, who was encouraging him, saying it would clear his name.'

Tim Hoare: Fun-loving financier whose daughter shared a New York flat with Eugenie 

 

Tim Hoare was a multi-millionaire stockbroker whose daughter was once rumoured to be a potential suitor for Prince Harry.

He founded the successful brokering operation T Hoare & Co in 1993, which helped fund mining projects around the world.

Mr Hoare, who had three wives, is a distant relative of the C Hoare & Co banking family, and his daughter Cate shared a flat in New York with Princess Eugenie. 

His family live at the Grade-II listed Hollycombe House in Liphook, Hampshire.

Described by the Daily Mail's Sebastian Shakespeare as a 'once-Falstaffian, popular figure', he famously shot a leopard dead in Tanzania in 2006.

Upon his return, aristocrat Debbie Bismarck, who had been with him in Africa, was seen wearing a leopard-skin coat and there was gossip over whether if it came from the big cat. However, the fur was bought by her husband 'Bolla' Bismarck as a prank.

C Hoare & Co, Britain's oldest bank, was founded in 1672 by Sir Richard Hoare and is now run by the 11th generation of his direct descendants.

The only way to join is by invitation from an existing account holder, with former customers including Jane Austen, Lord Byron and Eton College.

Mr Hoare died on August 31 at home aged 69. 

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A close friend of Beatrice insisted she 'wasn't part of the decision-making process', adding: 'Bea went to one meeting with the BBC. That's all.'

Beatrice, who hosted a party for her fiance's 36th birthday at Mayfair nightclub Annabel's last Tuesday, was said to be upset about the aftermath of the interview.

Royal biographer Phil Dampier told MailOnline today: 'A showdown between Charles and Andrew will be tense and difficult.

'The brothers have never been that close but Charles will be well aware how fond his mother the Queen is of Andrew and so that might hold him back a bit.

'I would expect him to make it clear that Andrew must stand down from public life for the foreseeable future and possibly permanently.

'Things are only going to get worse for Andrew with the Panorama interview with Virginia Roberts and other allegations coming out in the US.

'They have tussled in the past, noticeably when Andrew's daughters lost their police bodyguards.

'Charles is in favour of a slimmed down monarchy when he becomes king but they both denied there had been a rift a couple of years ago.

'Ironically they both fell out with Christopher Geidt, the Queen's private secretary, who they ousted a couple of years ago.

'I think that was a mistake and the Palace has suffered from a vacuum of decision making ever since.

'Charles needs to get a grip on the whole family and straighten them out.

'That includes his son Harry and wife Meghan, who have brought their own negative headlines in recent months.

'In the 1990s the royals formed the Way Ahead Group with Prince Philip as its chair to plot the monarchy's future. 

Prince Andrew's family attended the funeral at St Paul's, Knightsbridge without him yesterday

Sarah and Eugenie are pictured outside the church following the funeral service yesterday

'It led to the opening up of Buckingham Palace to tourists to help pay for the restoration of Windsor Castle.

'Nowadays Philip is retired at 98 and the Queen doesn't need the hassle at 93.

'It's time for Charles to act decisively as a king in waiting and he could do worse than to reform the Way Ahead Group with him at its head. 

'We were briefed that Charles was consulted by the Queen in New Zealand before Andrew was told to stand down, and now he is back he needs to take full control.'

Meanwhile, Charles and Andrew's mother the Queen opened the Royal Philatelic Society's new building today as the organisation celebrated its 150th anniversary. 

Prince Edward arrives at Buckingham Palace today as the Andrew controversy continues

Its new home in the City of London welcomes stamp collectors from across the globe eager to see the society's extensive collection.

Experts give thumbs-up to Queen's rare stamp collection

The Queen joked it was lucky rare stamps from her collection were 'genuine' after they were assessed by some of the UK's leading philatelists.

During a visit to the Royal Philatelic Society to open its new building in the City of London, the Queen was shown the stamps sent for authentication.

The Queen meets Royal Philatelic Society president Richard Stock in London today

Chris Harman, chairman of the society's experts committee, talked the monarch through the process of identifying the stamps and said later the head of state had quipped: 'Lucky they were genuine.'

He said the stamps were two valuable items that featured printing mistakes. The first was a Western Australian inverted swan four pence, from 1854. One of these last sold at auction for around £250,000.

The other stamp was an Inverted Head Four Annas of India, also dating from 1854, which has been sold in the past for as much as £100,000. 

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During her visit, the Queen - its patron - met architects, administration staff and supporters of the society and be shown a display of philatelic artefacts. 

Plans for a glittering reception at Buckingham Palace to mark Andrew's 60th birthday in February have been mothballed following public revulsion.

Representatives from his charities, business sponsors and military affiliations would have been invited to the party, but many have distanced themselves from him. 

During the BBC interview with Emily Maitlis, Andrew denied claims he had sex with a 17-year-old girl, Virginia Roberts, now known as Virginia Giuffre.

But he admitted he had 'let the side down' when he visited Epstein's home in New York – two years after the financier's conviction for soliciting a minor for prostitution.

The decision to go ahead with the interview - which BBC producers spent more than a year working on getting - was initially said to have been sanctioned by the Queen. 

But a royal source told the Sunday Times she had not given her approval and Andrew had not told her anything about what he planned to say. 

The Queen was said to be 'deeply frustrated' that the scandal had overshadowed the rest of the Royal Family's work although she remained 'privately supportive' of him.

She effectively sacked him from royal duties last week after her heir Charles and second in line to the throne, William, asked her to intervene.

Prince William arrives at Buckingham Palace today amid the ongoing Andrew controversy

William takes part in an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace today as he makes soprano singer Mary Bevan an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire)

Royal commentator Ingrid Seward told OK! magazine: 'Her majesty will have had a stiff martini - she always does that in times of crisis.  

'It's what her generation do instead of turning to counselling or pills. I would think she's still feeling very angry considering the quick retribution, and very let down.' 

A source told the Sunday Times William had spoken to the Queen and Charles about Andrew's future and believed his removal from public life was 'the right thing to do'. 

They said: 'William is becoming more and more involved in decisions about the institution [the monarchy] and he's not a huge fan of his uncle Andrew.' 

The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace this morning to visit the Royal Philatelic Society

The Queen is shown documents today as she visits the Royal Philatelic Society in London

Andrew agreed to withdraw from public duty but initially wanted to remain a figurehead for some 200 charities and other affiliations.  

But he was forced to back down after many made it clear they no longer wanted his backing.

At least 23 organisations have either dropped him or accepted his resignation, including the English National Ballet, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Outward Bound Trust.

Several sponsors have also dropped their backing for his Pitch@Palace business initiative and the project has been told to find offices outside of Buckingham Palace.

Today, his name was removed as patron of the £36,000-a-year Royal Hospital School near Ipswich in Suffolk, which has strong Royal and naval connections. 

The Duke of York speaks to BBC Newsnight's Emily Maitlis in an interview on November 16

He was listed as an 'Official Visitor' to the 750-pupil school - a largely ceremonial role representing the Queen - but his name has now been removed from its website.

A school spokesman said: 'It has been confirmed by the palace that the Duke of York is withdrawing from public duties and therefore he is not expected to conduct any further visits in his capacity as Official Visitor to the Royal Hospital School.'

There were calls for the duke's business dealings and private finances to be scrutinised by the public finance committee, Parliament's financial watchdog. 

Andrew still remains a figurehead for several military organisations, including as honorary Colonel for the Grenadier Guards. 

Sources said some regiments felt 'awkward' about him featuring on their Christmas cards, but his military affiliations are expected to remain in place for now – although the Palace has said he would not take part in any events.