As December is just in reach, the Royal Family will be gearing up to spend another Christmas Day at the Queen’s Sandringham estate,
The Royal Family takes Christmas very seriously and the team of chefs will no doubt already be perfecting the festive menu for December 25.
However, the Queen's menu choice and traditions may come as a surprise to some.
In fact, there is a tradition of weighing family members before and after their Christmas visit on an antique set of scales.
Dating back to King Edward VII, the weigh-in measures if people truly enjoyed their visit by gaining weight - the goal said to be three pounds.
The new film about Princess Diana titled 'Spencer' even includes this tradition at the start of the movie.
And while the monarchs may be expected to be dining on everything from caviar to foie gras on the big day, a former palace chef has revealed the Christmas meal he served up couldn’t have been more traditional.
The festivities may be quieter this year as it was reported last weekend that the Queen sprained her back, which caused her to miss Remembrance Day services.
It will be the first festive holiday in years that the Queen has sat down to a Christmas dinner without Prince Phillip, who passed away on April 12, aged 99.
The late Duke of Edinburgh spent four nights in King Edward VII's hospital in central London receiving treatment for a "pre-existing condition" from December 20 in 2019, prompting concerns he would miss out on a family Christmas.
However, he was discharged at 8.49am on Christmas Eve, allowing him to head back to Sandringham to spend Christmas with Queen Elizabeth.
And on Christmas Day in 1956, The Duke of Edinburgh was away from home on a voyage around the Commonwealth.
The Queen remained at Sandringham House where she has spent every Christmas since her father’s death in 1952.
The Royal Family's traditional Christmas celebrations at Sandringham House are back on this year after the Queen and Prince Philip spent the day apart from their loved ones last year for a Covid-safe affair.
A former palace chef has previously spilled the beans on what their festive meal might entail describing a traditional, but fairly lavish, Christmas feast.
Darren McGrady, who used to work in the royal kitchens, said the family was likely to dine on a big lunch after church, which would feature "a salad with shrimp or lobster, and a roasted turkey, and all of your traditional side dishes like parsnips, carrots, brussels sprouts, and Christmas pudding with brandy butter for dessert".
"They're actually boring when it comes to festivities. They didn't do hams or anything, just traditional turkeys.
"We did three turkeys for the Queen and her family in the royal dining room, one for the children's nursery and then more for the 100 or so staff, so everyone had a Christmas lunch."
McGrady went on to add: "The turkey is served with mashed and roast potatoes, chestnut or sage and onion stuffing, cranberry sauce and bread sauce. Vegetables include brussels sprouts, carrots and roast parsnips."
A traditional homemade Christmas pudding is served after the main meal and is "decorated in holly, doused in brandy, and the palace steward would carry it, flaming, into the royal dining room," says McGrady.
Mr McGrady claimed the family stuck with the same meal "year after year".
However, last year Mike Tindall gave a different account.
Speaking on his rugby podcast last year, he said the royals do much of their festive celebrating on Christmas Eve, and give their staff Christmas Day off.
"Christmas Day is a little more quiet because it's actually a cold buffet because they give everyone the day off, and their big day is Christmas Eve," he said.
While a festive tipple would usually be considered a must on the big day, it is unclear whether the monarch will be enjoying a wine, or a gin this year, following on from reports she has been advised to go teetotal.
The Queen, who has recently used a walking stick for the first time on royal visits, is said to be recovering after she had tests and spent a night in hospital last month.
A source said: "Her Majesty is very much looking forward to hosting her family at her Norfolk home for the Christmas holiday and there is much preparation to be done in time to accommodate everyone who has been invited.
"The Queen has many happy memories of being at Sandringham with the family over Christmas."
It was not yet known whether Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would be making their way over from the United States for the occasion.
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