Christmas at the Sandringham Estate is a delightful royal family affair – everyone travels up to their Norfolk holiday home, which is filled with twinkling lights and shimmering baubles. Even the guest house, which was shown off recently in the estate’s official Instagram account, gets its very own festive makeover!
However, it isn’t all sunshine and rainbows – or rather, snowflakes and turkeys – with a royal Christmas. Queen Camilla recently opened up about some of the struggles she faces at Christmas time that many people are sure to relate to.
During her visit to the set of the hit Disney+ series, Rivals, the wife of King Charles spoke to Victoria Smurfit, who plays Maud O’Hara in the show, about their Christmas cooking traditions.
While posing for a group photograph by the Aga on set, the two chatted about how easy it is to cook a turkey at Christmas all in one go, with Queen Camilla joking: “Except for the potatoes. You put them in and then find them dead two weeks later.” As it is unclear whether or not they have Agas in the royal homes, she’s likely referring to Christmas at her country home in Wiltshire, Ray Mill.
Queen Camilla’s visit to the set of Rivals
The 78-year-old paid a visit to the set of the television drama on Monday, 8 December, which is based on the book written by the late Jilly Cooper. She also revealed that binge-watching the series has cheered her up during her illness with pneumonia last year.
Queen Camilla was a good friend of the author, who died aged 88 in October after sustaining a fatal head injury during a fall at her Gloucestershire home.
© Getty ImagesAfter her death, the Queen Consort paid tribute to her, calling her a “legend” and a “wonderfully witty and compassionate friend to me and so many.”
Queen Camilla then watched the filming of the upcoming second series and used the clapper board for a scene on the ‘Master Dog’ set with actor Oliver Chris, who plays TV presenter James Vereker.
Christmas with the British royal family
Sandringham isn’t the only royal residence with an exciting set of Christmas decorations – Windsor Castle has also cemented its place as one to watch. Every year, there is an impressive 20-foot-tall tree inside the castle’s largest room, St George’s Hall.
This year, it features a combination of green and gold decorations, with 3,000 lights. HELLO!‘s Digital Content Director, Andrea Caamano, was present for the unveiling and shared her first-hand experience of what it was like to see the tree in person with the team: “The decorations on the tree in St George’s Hall are brand new. Some are as large as footballs, and honestly, you just can’t appreciate their scale in photos – if you can, I highly recommend seeing them in person.”
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