What do you give to the woman who has everything? Kate Middleton was faced with that very dilemma during her first Christmas with the royal family.
In the 2016 ITV special “Our Queen at Ninety,” Kate revealed the anxiety she felt when shopping for her first Christmas gift for the Queen. “I can remember being at Sandringham, for the first time, at Christmas. And I was worried what to give the Queen as her Christmas present,” she mused.
Kate got inspiration from her own family and selected a sentimental recipe: “I was thinking, ‘Gosh, what should I give her?’ I thought back to what would I give my own grandparents. And I thought, ‘I’ll make her something.’ Which could have gone horribly wrong. But I decided to make my granny’s recipe of chutney.”
As it turns out, the chutney was a hit, and the Queen proudly displayed the thoughtful gift to show her appreciation.
“I was slightly worried about it, but I noticed the next day that it was on the table,” Kate said. “I think such a simple gesture went such a long way for me and I’ve noticed since she’s done that on lots of occasions and I think it just shows her thoughtfulness, really, and her care in looking after everybody.”
Buckingham Palace has confirmed that Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip will not be heading to Sandringham for their traditional holiday get-together amid the pandemic.
A palace spokesperson told Access Hollywood in a statement, “Having considered all the appropriate advice, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh have decided that this year they will spend Christmas quietly in Windsor.”
While the royal family won’t be having their traditional celebrations, they have lots of fun memories of previous holidays to look back on.
One notable past royal Christmas was Meghan Markle’s first in 2017—she reportedly got everyone laughing with a silly gift for Prince William!
“Meghan’s biggest challenge was finding the perfect novelty gifts to amuse her new extended family,” Omid Scobe and Carolyn Durand recalled in “Finding Freedom.” “At least one of her gifts was a huge hit—a spoon for William that had ‘cereal killer’ embossed on the shallow bowl end of the utensil.”
From Meghan Markle To Kate Middleton: See The Royal Family’s Last Decade In Photos
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