The Royal Family's Christmas rule Prince George, Charlotte and Louis don’t have to follow at Carole Middleton’s home

Every family does Christmas slightly differently and although you’d think the Royal Family and Middletons would be very aligned with their traditional celebrations, there is a key difference. Although the Prince and Princess of Wales, George, Charlotte and Louis have marked the festive season in Norfolk most years recently, they have spent Christmas with Carole and Michael multiple times in the past.

When they’re at Sandringham House, the Waleses attend church with the rest of the royals before they enjoy their Christmas dinner. According to former royal chef Darren McGrady, the royal children don’t eat their roast turkey and trimmings with the adults.

Instead, he previously claimed they "eat separately in the nursery at 12:30pm" whilst the rest of the family take their seats "at 1pm sharp" in the dining room.

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Whenever the younger generation of royals are spotted in public together it’s clear how well they get on. From Princess Charlotte giggling and chatting with Mia Tindall last Christmas to Savannah Phillips hilariously shushing George during Trooping the Colour in 2018, they have provided us with some memorable moments.

They probably enjoy eating together on Christmas Day, but, even so, the idea of the children in the nursery without their parents, uncles, aunts and grandparents might divide the crowd.

It’s possible that there is now some leeway on this royal rule, as Darren has also suggested before that the kids ate in the nursery "until they were old enough to conduct themselves properly at the dining table" and master "polite conversation".

Whether or not this applies to Christmas too isn’t known, though the rule doesn’t apply at Carole and Michael Middleton’s home. The Princess of Wales’s mother believes in allowing children to eat at the table with the adults "as soon as they can sit up properly".

"As a family, we try to have as many meals together as possible because that’s when you talk and have fun," she added, describing the kitchen as her "favourite" room.

This approach is very different from the Royal Family, and means that George, Charlotte and Louis definitely get to eat Christmas dinner with the grown-ups when they spend Christmas Day in Berkshire. They last did so in 2021, though they’re expected to be in Norfolk this year.

Outside of Christmas, Catherine and William appear to have followed in her parents’ footsteps by prioritising family talking time. Speaking to Eugene Levy on Apple TV+’s The Reluctant Traveler, the future King shared that when they’re home together they "sit and chat" and none of the children have phones which they’re "strict" about.

At Anmer Hall in Norfolk they have an open-plan kitchen-dining room which gives them plenty of space for family mealtimes. Prince William, Catherine and their children typically stay here when they’re in Sandringham over the festive period which means they can enjoy being with the wider family as well as just each other.

"They are lucky because they have their own home close to Sandringham so they’ve always been able to wake up there, do stockings and presents and then go over to the big house for the more formal celebrations," former royal correspondent Jennie Bond declared last year.