The Queen gives her staff the same £8 Christmas present every year (and you probably have one in your pantry right now)

The Queen has a long-held tradition of buying each of her staff a Christmas gift from her private income. 

• Just what, you ask, does the monarch gift each and every member of her workforce come Christmas? An £8 Christmas pudding fresh from the aisles of British supermarket Tesco, of course. 
• Her Majesty is estimated to buy around 1,500 of the seasonal puddings every year.
• This follows royal news that Sarah Ferguson has shared an important health update on the Queen. 

The Royal Family are nothing if not traditionalists, so it doesn't come as a surprise that every year the Queen follows the long-held royal Christmas custom set by her grandfather, George V, that involves giving a gift to every single member of her workforce. 

Yes, the monarch has been known to order presents for everyone in the royal household—not just, you know, the actual royals – and is thought to usually give them alongside a Christmas pudding. 

Bought through the Privy Purse (that's the monarch's own private income), the puddings are distributed to staff at all royal residences, the Court Post Office, and the Palace police.

Her Majesty even hand delivers a few gifts to select members of her staff to thank them for their work throughout the year. 

Though sadly, the sweet tradition was reportedly scrapped last year owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, the great Christmas pudding gifting is thought to be back on the cards for Christmas 2021.

It's not just festive desserts the Queen uses to thank her staff, though. In the past, she has gifted a special trinket box, champagne flutes, and a photo frame engraved with her personal cypher. They got a Christmas pudding too, naturally.

Just where does the monarch shop for her festive treats? Harrods food hall? Royal grocer Fortnum & Mason? Nope, these days the monarch sources her puddings from budget-friendly retailer Tesco, according to Hello! magazine.

Thought to be a fan of the shop's 'Finest' range Matured Christmas Pudding – which rings at £8 per 800g pudding – the thoughtful gift comes complete with a greeting card, according to The Royal Family website.

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Finest Christmas Pudding, £8 (opens in new tab) | Tesco 

12 Months matured by Christmas day, Christmas pudding with COURVOISIER® VS Cognac.

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Christmas 2021 will be the first the Queen spends without her husband of 73 years Prince Philip, who died in April.

Much speculation has surrounded what the Royal Family's Christmas set up will look like this year (whether the great royal tradition of weighing Christmas guests will make a reprisal remains to be seen), but the monarch will no doubt spend it with her family at Sandringham, as per pre-pandemic tradition.

It's thought that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be returning to the UK for the festive season, and will instead spend Christmas in California with their children Archie and Lilibet.