Every family has their own unique yuletide traditions - but when there are around 70 royals in attendance for Christmas dinner, it seems that things have to be done a little differently.
The royal family are set to spend Christmas at Sandringham for the first time in three years as King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla host this year's festive celebrations. Christmas will be celebrated at the late Queen's former Norfolk Estate, with Princess Anne, Prince Edward and their families expected to join as well as the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children.
It's not known whether all members of the family will be in attendance, with reports suggesting that Prince Harry and Meghan will remain in the US over the festive period. But with many of the youngest members of the family spending Christmas there, they are likely to follow an unconventional tradition that was in place the last time the royals dined at Sandringham as revealed by Princess Anne's son-in-law Mike Tindall, The Mirror reports.
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Speaking on his rugby podcast back in 2019, Mike, 44, shared some insight into what it's like tucking into Christmas dinner as a member of the royal family - and revealed that there is an unusual convention when it comes to the little ones. "This is the family lunch, there were seven tables so there must have been about 70 of us there," he recalled.
"The kiddies have their own little one in a different room," Mike added. This includes William and Kate's three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, as well as Mike and Zara's children Mia, Lena and Lucas, who all get to enjoy their own separate festive meal together.
After leaving the I'm A Celebrity camp last month, Mike predicted that he might be receiving some jokey Christmas presents from his royal in-laws as they poke fun at his stint in the jungle. Asked on Good Morning Britain whether any royals had watched him in the ITV show, he replied: "I don't right now, but I'm sure I'll find out at some point.
"Christmas is around the corner - let's see if some interesting gifts come underneath that tree. There's some sense of humour kicking around in the family, so yeah, I'll wait for some interesting gifts to see how many people were watching."
Mike also ended up covering his face with embarrassment as GMB host Susanna Reid brought up a story he had told his fellow campmates of the time he split his trousers in front of Princess Anne - while wearing underwear that read 'nibble my nuts'. Admitting that his wife Zara will likely have informed her mother that the world now knows the embarrassing story, Mike suggested that it could cause some awkwardness when the family gets together for Christmas.
"I'm pretty sure it's probably etched into her memory banks for all the wrong reasons, so I'll bashfully hide away from that one when I get home," he laughed.
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