THE QUEEN is likely to be joined by many senior royals including Prince Andrew Christmas Lunch at Windsor Castle – but Anne has to pull out due to Covid.
Anne, 71, will not be able to spend Christmas Day with the monarch as planned as her husband Sir Timothy Laurence has tested positive for Covid.
It is no known whether Prince Charles and Camilla will be in attendance as well as Prince William and Kate Middleton.
Prince Andrew is expected to be joined by Sarah Fergusson and their two daughters Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice.
The Queen has already cancelled Christmas at Sandringham with the decision being described as a "precautionary approach” due to rising Omicron cases in the UK.
This means that the monarch will have a more relaxed and low-key Christmas this year. Experts claim there will be no games of charades and limited gift-giving.
Instead of the usual 30-person celebration the Queen is used to hosting for, this year she is expected to have no more than 15 family members.
Read our royal family live blog for the latest news and updates…
- Joseph Gamp
Queen ‘sidelined’ Prince Harry & Meghan with 2019 Xmas speech
According to a book, the Duke and Duchess of Susses felt sidelined in the royal family long before they decided to quit their senior position as royals.
In the biography Finding Freedom, it claims that the couple felt “sidelined” when no picture of them and their son Archie were displayed as Her Majesty gave her Christmas speech back in 2019.
Despite this, in the previous year, Harry and Meghan appeared in a photo with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as the Queen read her message.
- Joseph Gamp
Queen suffers Christmas blow with party plans in chaos as Covid forces Princess Anne to cancel
THE Queen was today dealt a blow to her Christmas plans after daughter Princess Anne was forced to isolate – meaning she will MISS the monarch's festivities.
Anne, 71, will not be able to spend Christmas Day with the monarch as planned as her husband Sir Timothy Laurence has tested positive for Covid.
It's understood retired Royal Navy vice admiral Sir Timothy, 66, and the Princess Royal are isolating at the Gatcombe Park Estate in Gloucestershire.
But it is not yet known where the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be spending Christmas.
Royal expert Angela Levin says the Queen will be "disappointed" that Anne will not be able to join the festive gathering.
She tweeted: "The Queen will be disappointed not to see Princess Anne at Windsor because he husband Sir Timothy has tested positive for Covid.
"Anne is very dutiful and the offspring most like the late Prince Philip. Same sense of humour, same attitude. Hopefully he will recover soon."
- Joseph Gamp
Royal Chefs share recipe for 'perfect' gingerbread house
Festive food is a big part of Christmas celebrations and this year the royal kitchens have revealed their recipe for the "perfect" gingerbread house.
Shared on the royal family's official Twitter page, Buckingham Palace chefs have put together a step-by-step guide on how to bake and decorate the gingerbread from scratch.
A video created by the cooks features guidance on how to decorate the house, with a time-lapse showing the delicate piping techniques used.
The recipe even includes a diagram with the exact measurements to help bakers build the festive structure.
This year the Queen has decided to remain at Windsor Castle for the Christmas period, rather than travel to Sandringham as usual.
It has not yet been confirmed where the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be spending Christmas.
You can try out the royal recipe for yourself here: https://www.royal.uk/royal-chefs-gingerbread-house
- Joseph Gamp
What is the Royal Carols: Together At Christmas service?
The Duchess of Cambridge hosted and spearheaded the Royal Carols: Together At Christmas service, which paid tribute to the work of "inspirational" people who served their communities during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Garraway received praise and critical acclaim following the documentary Finding Derek earlier this year, which showed her family life while her husband spent a year in hospital after contracting coronavirus.
The programme, which followed the journey of her love, won the authored documentary prize at the National Television Awards in September.
Royal Carols: Together At Christmas will air on Christmas Eve at 7.30pm on ITV and ITV Hub.
- Joseph Gamp
Kate Garraway's reading at Royal Carol service
Kate Garraway has read a passage about love at Westminster Abbey during a royal carol service.
The TV presenter, who has publicly charted her husband Derek Draper's Covid-19 battle, delivered a scripture reading of Love Came Down At Christmas.
Standing on a lectern at the Abbey, the Good Morning Britain host read: "Love came down at Christmas, love all lovely, love divine, love was born at Christmas, star and angels gave the sign.
"Worship we the Godhead, love incarnate, love divine, worship we our Jesus, but wherewith for sacred sign, love shall be our token, love be yours, and love be mine.
"Love to God and all men, love for plea, and gift and sign."
- Joseph Gamp
Shopping made easy
WHEN you are the Queen, it’s not always possible to take a leisurely stroll around the shops looking for Christmas presents.
So Her Majesty, 95, has a very special shopping experience set up for her so she can pick gifts for her four kids, eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
According to former butler Paul Burrell, who worked for the Queen and Princess Diana, the monarch gets her very own John Lewis pop-up shop at Windsor Castle.
He told Closer magazine: “Firstly, she has catalogues sent to her, and then the Oxford Street branch of John Lewis sends her a selection of almost everything they stock.
“There is a little ‘shop’ set up in the drawing room at Windsor Castle and the Queen can pop in and choose gifts at her leisure. Late at night, after dinner, usually around 10pm, she’ll pop into her little Christmas shop and do some shopping.
“The Queen always chooses practical gifts that can be used – never ornaments or decorative things. So she might pick some picnic plates, a tablecloth, or a couple of hand towels. Then they are wrapped up and a truckload of presents are ready to go to Sandringham.”
- Joseph Gamp
Awkward exchange between Meghan and fan
TikTok user Laura-Ann Barr has shared the hilarious moment when the Duchess asked her if she had picked the bouquet from her own garden, pretending that she had.
The woman shakes Meghan’s hand and gives her a bouquet of flowers, saying: “Nice to meet you, congratulations.”
Meghan can be heard asking for Laura’s name, before saying: “Thank you, are these from your garden?”
In a moment of panic, Laura replies: “Yes.”
Meghan then adds: “Oh my goodness how sweet, thank you for thinking of me. That’s really kind.”
Laura-Ann, who posts under @allthatspretty admittited that: “They were really just from Tesco.”
One person wrote: “Sorry this is so funny.”
Another added: “No hesitation,” while a third wrote: “Finds the price tag”, while a fourth queried: “What made her think they were from your garden?!”
- Joseph Gamp
Cambridge family loves playing THIS game
Brits have previously heard of the Royal’s love of charades, although it seems the next generation have begun to favour board games – despite some struggling with defeat.
Prince William explained: “We’re playing board games with the children quite a lot. We love Monopoly, that’s good.
“And Risk, that’s a good game. It goes on for hours, and usually everybody gets very cross because they lose.”
- Joseph Gamp
Princess Anne's husband tests positive for Covid
Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, the husband of the Princess Royal, has tested positive for coronavirus.
A royal source said Anne and her husband will now not be spending Christmas with the Queen as they will be isolating.
Earlier this week, it was revealed the Queen would be spending her first Christmas without her husband, Prince Philip – who died in April – at Windsor Castle.
The monarch usually hosts her family at Sandringham in Norfolk, with crowds of wellwishers turning out to watch the royals walk to the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church on the estate.
It is not yet known where the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be spending Christmas.
Last week, it was revealed the Queen had cancelled plans for her pre-Christmas family lunch, due to be held on Tuesday.
The annual event allows members of the family who cannot travel to Sandringham to spend time with the monarch, but last year's lunch was also cancelled because of the pandemic.
- Joseph Gamp
Downing Street: 'Likely' PM's audience with Queen to go virtual
Downing Street said it was likely the Prime Minister's audiences with the Queen would move to being virtual.
Asked whether Boris Johnson would continue to meet the Queen in person, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "That will be a matter for the royal family.
"I'm not aware of them not being… I think they will probably be moved virtually but that'll be a matter for the palace."
- Louis Allwood
Royal rules and rankings
It is claimed that an ancient royal protocol rules that Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle should curtsy to Princesses Anne, Beatrice and Eugenie, as well as to Her Majesty.
At royal gatherings everyone should curtsy before the Queen, but the two duchesses are meant to formally greet princesses from birth, like Princesses Anne, Beatrice and Eugenie.
The ancient rule was first rolled out by Tudor Queen Elizabeth I in 1595.
British aristocracy expert Wendy Bosberry-Scott said women who marry in are viewed as having lower status than their full-royal blood counterparts.
Bosberry-Scott, told People: “Women of the royal family who marry in like Kate and Meghan gain their titles by marriage and therefore are of a lower rank than those born into their titles.”
- Louis Allwood
Christmas blow for the Queen
Anne, 71, will not be able to spend Christmas Day with the monarch as planned as her husband Sir Timothy Laurence has tested positive for Covid.
It's understood Sir Timothy, 66, and the Princess Royal are isolating at the Gatcombe Park Estate in Gloucestershire.
But it is not yet known where the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be spending Christmas.
It comes after the Queen, 95, was forced to scrap her traditional trip to Sandringham, Norfolk, as the UK battles rapidly rising cases of the Omicron variant.
- Louis Allwood
How can I watch The Queen's Christmas Day speech?
The Queen's Christmas speech will be broadcast on BBC One, ITV, Sky One, Sky News and can be listened to on BBC Radio 4 on Christmas Day at 3pm.
Those who decide to watch it on mobile devices or online can find the royal address on the Royal Family YouTube Channel and on their Facebook page.
- Louis Allwood
What will The Queen say?
The 2021 royal address will no doubt be a more emotional one for Her Majesty, following the loss of her husband Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, and the continuing impact of coronavirus, with the Omicron variant sweeping across the nation.
In 2020, the Queen used her Christmas Day message to reassure anyone struggling without friends and family that they "are not alone".
She said what many people want "for Christmas is a simple hug or a squeeze of the hand" – but "even on the darkest nights there is hope in the new dawn".
Her Majesty praised acts of kindness, saying the pandemic "brought us closer" despite causing hardship.
In 2021, the Queen will spend Christmas at Windsor Castle as she won’t travel to Sandringham as the decision is described "precautionary approach” due to rising Omicron cases in the UK.
This means that the monarch will have a more relaxed and low-key Christmas this year.
Experts claim there will be no games of charades and limited gift-giving.
Instead of the usual 30-person celebration the Queen is used to hosting for, in 2021 she is expected to have no more than 15 family members.
- Louis Allwood
What time is The Queen's Christmas Day speech?
The Queen's 2021 speech will be broadcast across multiple UK channels from 3pm on Saturday, December 25.
Traditionally the time of 3pm has been selected for the Queen's royal message since it was first televised by the BBC in 1957.
On her first televised Christmas Day speech, the Queen said: “I very much hope that this new medium will make my Christmas message more personal and direct.
“It is inevitable that I should seem a rather remote figure to many of you.
"A successor to the Kings and Queens of history; someone whose face may be familiar in newspapers and films but who never really touches your personal lives.
"But now at least for a few minutes I welcome you to the peace of my own home.”
However, the 94-year-old's speeches are no longer broadcast live and are instead pre-recorded in early December.
- Louis Allwood
Cambridge's get help from a Norland nanny
Prince William and Kate Middleton frequently do the school run themselves, dropping their children off for the day but the parents do also have the help of a Norland nanny.
The special measures are likely to have been granted to the children as a security precaution given their position, fame and family.
A source told Vanity Fair: "He’s very popular and has lots of friends, and there’s very little fuss made about who he is.
"Either William or Kate do drop off, and they are always very friendly.
"William particularly loves to have a chat with some of the other parents and he works out with some of the mums at the Harbour Club after drop off. He’s very chatty and amiable.”
- Louis Allwood
Prince George and Princess Charlotte have extra school privilege
The young children attend St Thomas' a private school in Battersea and the family have permission to do something that will make their school drop offs just a little bit easier.
Pupils at the school are supposed to be dropped outside the school gates in order to minimise the risk of spreading covid, but the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are able to drive their kids through the school gates and into the grounds.
Thomas’ school introduced a number of practices to protect staff, students and their families during the pandemic including changes to the drop off procedure.
This meant children had to be delivered to the front gate by parents or carers.
But the Cambridge children have special permission to drive into the school grounds.
Speaking to Vanity Fair, royal expert Katie Nicholl said: “According to one parent, the school has installed numerous Covid prevention measures and parents now have to drop children at the school gates.
“The Cambridges, however, are still able to drive their children into the school grounds.”
- Louis Allwood
William reveals what makes him 'cross'
Earlier this month, the dad-of-three chatted to Radio Marsden – which broadcasts to his patronage the Royal Marsden Hospital.
During the informal chat, the Duke was quizzed by kids about some of the family's Christmas celebrations – including one boy who wanted to know what his favourite board game is.
William replied: "Henry, we are playing board games with the children quite a lot.
"We love Monopoly, that's good and Risk, have you played Risk before?"
The strategic board game gives players and equal number of countries to begin and challenges them to conquer others.
And as Wills knows all too well with George and Charlotte, it's guaranteed to cause an argument or two.
He added: "That's a good board game, it goes on for hours and usually everyone gets very cross because they lose."
- Louis Allwood
Princess Eugenie’s favourite drink
New mum Eugenie may have been off the alcohol during her pregnancy with baby August, but the royal is sure to be raising a glass this festive season.
She told Harper’s Bazaar, “My favourite drink is vodka soda with loads of lime. Can’t beat that.”
Her husband, Jack Brooksbank, is the brand ambassador of Casamigos and it was served at their royal wedding in 2018.
- Louis Allwood
A Royal snub
The Duchess of Cambridge hosted the Together at Christmas carol concert at Westminister Abbey on Wednesday and was seen wearing a pair of sapphire and diamond earrings that were lent to her by the Queen.
Royal expert Daniela Elser highlighted that this is the second time Kate has worn jewellery belonging to the Queen, stating that she believes the earrings have been permanently lent to her.
However, Meghan has only ever been lent the Queen’s wedding tiara, which royal fans believe means Kate is more trusted.
Speaking on News Au, Ms Elser said: “While the former actress might own pieces which had belonged personally to Diana, Princess of Wales, getting to frock up in some enormous sparklers from the royal trove was a perk she never enjoyed.”
- Louis Allwood
Diana's first Christmas
LET’S be honest – spending Christmas with your other half’s family for the first time is always going to be a little nerve-wracking.
But what about if you’ve married into one of the most famous families in the world? Well, we can only imagine the stress.
In December 1981, Princess Diana found herself in this exact scenario when she spent her first festive season at Sandringham with her new husband Prince Charles and the Royals.
According to royal expert Victoria Arbiter, the 20-year-old went all out with presents for the family.
However, the latest addition to the family was left mortified when she realised the Royals always opt for low-key presents – and she hadn’t been warned in advance.
Victoria told 9Honey: “During her first newlywed Christmas at Sandringham in 1981, Diana fell foul of the ‘cheap and cheerful’ family motto and gave everyone pricey cashmere jumpers.
“Beautiful as her gifts will have been, Diana was left rather red-faced having not been made aware of the family’s jokey tradition.”
- Louis Allwood
Royal secrets
One reason the late Duke’s will is not to be made public for at least 90 years is to protect the Sovereign’s position.
Further to this, judge Sir Andrew McFarlane said it must remain secret to protect the Queen’s “dignity and standing”.
Sir Andrew said to the BBC: “I have held that, because of the constitutional position of the Sovereign, it is appropriate to have a special practice in relation to royal wills.
“There is a need to enhance the protection afforded to truly private aspects of the lives of this limited group of individuals in order to maintain the dignity of the Sovereign and close members of her family.”
- Louis Allwood
Royal roundup
- We shared how Meghan’s ‘mask slipped’ showing ‘hostile behaviour’ in interview before she met Harry, says body language expert.
- Meanwhile, Meghan showed her real feelings about her royal title with one gesture on Ellen show, says body language expert.
- And Meghan and Prince Harry will skip Christmas with “disappointed” Queen & will celebrate in $15m pad, it’s claimed.
Awkward exchange between Meghan and fan
TikTok user Laura-Ann Barr has shared the hilarious moment when the Duchess asked her if she had picked the bouquet from her own garden, pretending that she had.
The woman shakes Meghan’s hand and gives her a bouquet of flowers, saying: “Nice to meet you, congratulations.”
Meghan can be heard asking for Laura’s name, before saying: “Thank you, are these from your garden?”
In a moment of panic, Laura replies: “Yes.”
Meghan then adds: “Oh my goodness how sweet, thank you for thinking of me. That’s really kind.”
Laura-Ann, who posts under @allthatspretty admittited that: “They were really just from Tesco.”
One person wrote: “Sorry this is so funny.”
Another added: “No hesitation,” while a third wrote: “Finds the price tag”, while a fourth queried: “What made her think they were from your garden?!”
‘There will be family visiting Queen in Windsor’
“The decision was a personal one after careful consideration and reflects a precautionary approach,” a source has said.
“There will be family visiting Windsor over the Christmas period and all appropriate guidelines will be followed.”
Source: Read Full Article
