The royal family has a lovely Christmas
tradition at the palace. It’s
previously been hailed one of the best seasonal treats, and each year, the
Queen presents her staff with this Special
Yuletide Gift – Tesco’s Finest Matured Christmas Pudding.
Although
the royal family is known for giving each other “funny” presents,
the monarch makes sure a pudding is ordered for each of her 550-odd staff
members.
Prior
to the Tesco sweet treat, the Queen used to hand out puddings from Harrods or
Fortnum & Mason – which holds a warrant as royal grocers – as festive
gifts. Each year, the order was made up of more than 1,000 puddings, which
meant the switch to Tesco saved the royal purse a considerable amount.
 |
| The Queen gives her staff the same gift each Christmas |
Meanwhile,
for those who have worked for Her Majesty for a considerable amount of time,
they are also handed a voucher. It has been reported that the handing out of
Christmas vouchers to staff is regiment, with the most senior household staff
going first, followed by clerks and then domestic workers and gardeners.
The Queen, 95, tends to host Christmas for
the royal family at Sandringham House in Norfolk each year. However, due to the
pandemic, this has changed. Last year, Her Majesty spent the festive season in
Windsor Castle for the first time in 33 years.
Her
annual gift-giving ceremony for her staff was also reportedly canceled. Every
year, the Queen personally hands out presents to some members of the royal
household at Buckingham Palace and at Windsor Castle to thank them for their
service. At the time, the Daily Mail reported the annual ceremony did not take
place amid social distancing rules.
 |
| Tesco Finest Christmas Pudding, £8, Tesco |
When
it comes to Christmas with the royals, presents for the family are placed on
trestle tables which they get to open on Christmas Eve.
Darren McGrady – the former chef to the Queen
said: “It was the same meal every year. They’re actually boring when it
comes to festivities! They didn’t do hams or anything, just traditional
turkeys. We did three turkeys for the Queen and her family in the royal dining
room, one for the children’s nursery and then more for the 100 or so staff, so
everyone had a Christmas lunch.”
He added: “Not long after they’d go in for afternoon tea. It was always
the chocolate Yule log, which was a twist on the chocolate birthday cake,
scones, mince pies, different types of sandwiches and the Christmas cake. We’d
make one big Christmas cake for the Queen and the royal family and then another
smaller one for the nursery for Prince William, Prince Harry, Zara, Peter,
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. It was always fruit cake – royal icing,
marzipan and the traditional fruit cake.”
