King Frederik and Queen Mary of Denmark are changing the schedule of one of their best-loved traditions. The Danish Palace has announced that the Royal Couple’s Awards, known in Danish as Kongeparrets Priser, will be presented every two years instead of annually. The next ceremony is set for the autumn of 2027.
The palace explained the decision in a short statement. It said the change was intended to create the best possible framework for the event and would give more room to stage a ceremony that inspires and brings Danes together. The palace said it looked forward to “the next presentation of The Royal Couple’s Awards” in the autumn of 2027. There will therefore be no ceremony this year, with the most recent edition having taken place in 2025.
The awards have deep personal roots for the couple.
They were created as a wedding gift when Frederik and Mary married in 2004, and the pair have hosted them every year since. The couple choose the nominees themselves and hand out the prizes on live television. Over the years there have been five categories: Culture, Social, Stardust, Innovation and Community. The ceremony has usually moved between Danish cities, but in 2013 it was held at the Sydney Opera House to mark the venue’s 40th anniversary and to honour Mary’s Australian background.
The announcement came in the same week as another royal engagement. On Wednesday, the King, 58, and the Queen, 54, attended a concert at Fredensborg Church to celebrate its 300th anniversary, joined by Queen Margrethe, 86. The church was built between 1724 and 1726 by the architect JC Krieger, who also designed the nearby palace and its baroque gardens, and was inaugurated on 11 October 1726. The programme featured works by Bach, Hasse and Purcell, alongside a new piece by Louise Alenius.
Queen Mary wore a gold midi skirt with a long-sleeved black V-neck blouse for the concert, while Queen Margrethe, dressed in electric blue, appeared with a plaster across her nose following a recent stay in hospital. For fans of the awards, the wait will now be longer than usual. The palace has framed the change as a way to make each ceremony bigger and more meaningful, and the 2027 edition will be the first held under the new two-year rhythm.
