When it comes to the Royal Family - what with their glamorous state dinners replete with tiaras and lavish celebrations - one might expect that Christmas is always a ritzy affair.
However, we know that the royals like to keep things more lowkey when it comes to their gift-giving, and it’s part of a cheeky tradition that Princess Catherine continued when she joined the fold.
Opting for funny, gag gifts is one thing, but Paul Burrell, the former footman to the late Queen Elizabeth II, has revealed that Her Majesty took it even further, with Tupperware being the gift she loved the most at Christmas.
Paul - who also served as a butler to King Charles and Princess Diana in his time within the Royal Households - revealed that "the most popular gift of all” for the late Queen was "Tupperware. Yes, Tupperware."
He revealed that Her Majesty preferred receiving useful gifts, explaining the late royal would take her Tupperware “constantly for picnics."
It’s well-known that, during their summer holidays at Balmoral, the Scottish estate privately owned by the Royal Family, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip would enjoy taking their children and grandchildren on picnics and BBQs.
The Tupperware she got for Christmas, therefore, was "perfect for packing a slab of butter, crackers, or cheese".
He added, "One year, Prince Edward, who was only a young lad at the time, gave her a bright yellow plastic Tupperware butter dish. Of all the gifts she received that year, that was the one she admired the most."
He continues, "It was practical, useful, and something she actually needed. And that always stayed with me: when buying for the Queen, think practical and useful."
As well as loving practical gifts, it’s been suggested that the Queen loved a comical gift.
In the book, Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand wrote that for her first Christmas with the Royal Family, Meghan Markle "bought a little hamster that sings with a little rope for Her Majesty. It was so funny, especially when the corgis tried to take hold of the toy."
The same book also makes claims that Prince Harry once gave his grandmother a hilarious gift too, "a shower cap emblazoned with the phrase, 'Ain’t life a b****’" - something which Her Majesty reportedly "loved".
Food containers and gag gifts - who knew it was so easy to buy for royalty?
