Former Royal Staffer Reveals What Queen Elizabeth Made a Non-Negotiable Tradition at Christmas

The royal family has quite a few traditions around the holidays. Some of those include a large family gathering at the Sandringham estate, opening presents on Christmas Eve, and enjoying a feast on Christmas Day that includes a turkey with all the trimmings prepared by royal chefs.

Now, one person who used to work for the family is sharing what they remember about the royals’ Christmas celebrations and what was absolutely non-negotiable as far as Queen Elizabeth was concerned.

Paul Burrell began working in the royal household when he was 18 years old and became Queen Elizabeth II‘s personal footman. He was later moved to the household of then-Prince Charles and Princess Diana. After they separated, Burrell stayed on the staff as the princess’s butler, a position he served in until her death.

Speaking on behalf of OLBG, Burrell told Showbiz Cheat Sheet, “Everybody had to bring a present, and everybody had to place that present on a table which was marked for a particular member,” Burrell explained. “There’s a massive trestle table all sectioned off from the queen at one end down to the lady in waiting at the far end, and everybody had a space.”

He also revealed what was non-negotiable for every guest.

“The non-negotiable things are meal times,” the former royal butler recalled. “Everyone has to appear for breakfast at 9 a.m. Everyone has to have lunch at 1 p.m., tea at 5 o’clock, and dinner at 8:15 p.m. No one messed with [Queen Elizabeth’s] timetable. So your day revolves around the monarch, and in my time, tea time was probably the most important, where the queen would make tea and pour a cup of tea and have her entire family with her, then she could have a conversation with everyone and find out what’s going on in their worlds.”