Former royal butler Paul Burrell has opened up about what Christmas with the Queen actually looks like.
- Paul Burrell has claimed that the Queen only eats a very modest portion of Christmas lunch, unlike many people up and down the country.
- He has also suggested that Her Majesty loves washing up and often wears marigold gloves while she does so.
- In other Royal News, the Royal Family supposedly turned down the chance to fact-check Netflix's The Crown when they were asked.
And whilst we may imagine the royal festivities being glamorous and traditional affairs with plenty of food and drink to enjoy, it seems the 94-year-old monarch has some more down-to-earth Christmas preferences.
Burrell has often been turned to in recent years for insights on the Royal Family. Having served as Her Majesty’s personal footman, he went on to serve as butler to Princess Diana for 10 years. With a huge amount of experience at his disposal, it’s no wonder that he seems to know a great deal about royal life.
Now he has revealed some surprising things about what habits the Queen has at Christmas…
What has former royal butler Paul Burrell revealed about the Queen’s Christmas habits?
As reported in The Mirror, Paul Burrell has recently opened up to Vicky Pattison on her The Secret podcast. Speaking of the Queen’s Christmas habits, he revealed that Her Majesty “only ever eats very little portions” and described her as having “great self-discipline”.
He explained: “She doesn’t eat a Christmas dinner like we do where it is piled high and you can’t see each other across the table”.
Whilst this may be unusual compared to a lot of British households who embrace the festivities and enjoy plenty of seasonal food and drink, Burrell revealed that the Queen also enjoys another more unusual activity.
What other surprising habit does Burrell claim the Queen has?
Though many of us would do anything to get out of washing the dishes at any time of year, it seems the monarch might actually enjoy giving things a good clean.
Mr Burrell admitted: “She likes to wash up”. This seems to be the case especially when she’s at her Scottish estate of Balmoral.
As Burrell explained: “She puts on the marigolds and when she goes out to the log cabin at Balmoral she is stood there with her marigolds on and she washes up and the lady in waiting dries."
This is perhaps less of a surprise given that royal author Juliet Rieden has previously told the Express how Balmoral is where the Queen “loves to be” and where she enjoys a more “normal” existence.
Juliet reportedly said: “She always said this is where she feels most herself and feels most free." The Royal Family’s annual mass gathering at the Queen’s Norfolk home, Sandringham, is certainly facing some significant changes this year due to covid-19.
Many aspects of the royals’ traditional Christmas won’t happen this year. From 23 December to 27 December Brits are allowed to mix with up to two households aside from their own.
With four children, eight grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, the Queen faced the difficult task of deciding who she and Prince Philip would include in their bubble. There were rumours circulating that the Queen will choose her youngest son Prince Edward and his family to be in her bubble.
It has now been announced that the Queen and Prince Philip will remain at Windsor Castle for a quiet Christmas.
This marks the first time in 33 years that the Queen will not spend Christmas at Sandringham in Norfolk. It has not yet been announced whether any members of the Royal Family might join the Queen at any point during the festive period.
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