Prince William Shared What the Royal Family’s Christmas Day Church Service Is Really Like: ‘Luckily, No One’s Filming It’

The whole world sees the royal family as they depart from morning church service at St Mary Magdalene on December 25, passing (and mingling with!) throngs of well-wishers on their way back to Sandringham House and the Christmas lunch that awaits them there.

What we don’t look, however, at what goes on inside the walls of St. Mary Magdalene, located on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Luckily, Prince William took us all inside those four walls.

Speaking of the Apple Fitness + podcast It’s time for a walk in 2021 (and a half Mirror), the future king, 42, answered questions as he strolled through Sandringham, including at one point passing the church so dear to the royal family.

Prince William recalls family Christmas memories — and what made him ‘laugh’ in church as a child

St. Mary Magdalene Church on Sandringham Estate. Getty

“What’s really good about it is that we sit across from each other as a family, and when I was growing up, when my cousins ​​sat across from me, sometimes it was quite difficult to keep a straight face,” he said.

Although he does not mention any relatives by name, he is probably referring to Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall — the son and daughter of Princess Anne, who are only a few years older than him — and Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, the daughters of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, who are a couple years younger than him. (Prince Edward and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh’s children, Lady Louise and James, Earl of Wessex, were born in the 2000s, when Prince William was already an adult.)

There would, of course, be Prince William’s younger brother, Prince Harry.

“I laughed a lot during the service,” William said of the Christmas service. “Luckily, no one is recording it, so you can get away with it. And at Christmas it’s fun to giggle and enjoy.”

Prince William and Princess Diana at Sandringham. Tim Graham/Getty

William also recalled those famous walks to church on December 25, telling the podcast: “I have strong memories of walking here and my grandfather [Prince Philip]he used to walk so fast that there would be huge gaps and spaces between all of us walking down, and we’d be in the back with little legs trying to keep up.”

He added of the walk to the church: “Walking here, you have the big pines that are synonymous with this part of Norfolk. And I love the smell of pine in winter. It’s very soothing.”

William continued: “As we walk this way, it was a walk that my family did for many, many years on the way to church at Christmas. It must have been at least 25 years by now.”

“You know, I think over time you start to feel quite attached to those moments and those memories before,” he said.

Prince William’s most unexpected and personal quotes from his ‘Time to Walk’ audio tour

Princess Diana, Prince William, Prince Philip and the rest of the royal family at Sandringham. Photo Library by Tim Graham/Getty Images

Rebecca English by The Daily Mail further opened up about life behind the scenes at Sandringham on Palace Confidential podcast, where the royal family traditionally gathers for the Christmas holidays, saying the royal family’s Christmas experience “sounds more glamorous than it is”.

“I’ve been told in the past that Sandringham can fit about 16 to 18 people to sleep comfortably,” she added. (Note that Prince William said earlier this month, at a meeting with families of the 1st Battalion Mercian Regiment at Picton Barracks in Wiltshire, that he expected to celebrate with 45 family members this year.)

Catherine, Princess of Wales Prince Louis of Wales, Princess Charlotte of Wales, Prince William, Prince of Wales and Prince George of Wales at the Christmas morning service at Sandringham Church on December 25, 2024 in Sandringham, Norfolk.

Samir Hussein/WireImage

Sometimes, English said, the living quarters get so crowded that royals are forced to turn to staff members’ bedrooms to accommodate them: “In previous years, I’ve been told they’ve actually had to kick staff out of their rooms,” English added. “And Edward and Sophie were placed in some of the staff rooms because they had nowhere else to stay.”

Describing the beds as “like what they call ‘fish finger beds'”, English said Sandringham has “old-fashioned beds with really squeaky springs at the bottom.”

Richard Eden spoke along with his Daily Mail colleague English, adding that “at Sandringham House itself, because it’s a private residence, we don’t know exactly how many bedrooms there are, for example,” but it is assumed that “there are believed to be around 30.” (Apart from Sandringham House itself, there are a number of other buildings on the estate where guests can stay, such as Wood Farm, where the Duke and Duchess of York were expected to stay before canceling their attendance at the Sandringham celebrations due to Andrew’s links to an alleged Chinese spy .)

Sandringham House, taken on 30 August 2011. Indigo/Getty Images

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“There’s going to be a lot of royals staying there this Christmas, and that doesn’t mean it’s a lot of fun,” Eden continued. “You have this huge extended family of gifts to open together and things like that.”

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education