“Some can stand it, some can’t. Diana couldn’t stand it.”
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With some rather unusual rules, multiple wardrobe changes a day and dozens of family members under the same roof, navigating a royal Christmas would intimidate even the most unflappable guest. When it came to celebrating the holidays at Sandringham, former royal butler Paul Burrell tells Marie Claire that Princess Diana, unsurprisingly, wasn’t the biggest fan.
No matter how much Diana dreaded going to the annual Christmas festivities, Burrell—who worked for the late princess from 1987 to 1997—says “she knew that was her duty.”
“Christmas for her was her duty to be there with her Harry and William and estranged husband, and the Royal Family,” the former butler, speaking on behalf of Spin Genie, shares. “She was still a member of the Royal Family in those days and she had to grin and bear it.”
Burrell, who tells Marie Claire Princess Diana would insist he spend the holiday with his own family, says, “Unfortunately, she had very sad Christmases.”
Diana posed with her husband and a young Prince Harry for a 1988 post-Christmas photocall at Sandringham.
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“She would escape it as soon as she could but there were huge personalities in there she couldn’t cope with,” Burrell says of the atmosphere at Sandringham.
It’s no wonder Diana found it difficult; during the earlier years Burrell worked for the princess, her marriage was falling apart. Add in piles of in-laws you don’t necessarily gel with and a packed schedule of activities, and it’s a recipe for festive disaster.
“It’s like a pressure cooker, Sandringham at Christmas, of people and emotion,” Burrell adds. “Some can stand it, some can’t. Diana couldn’t stand it.”
The late royal, surrounded by her sons, Prince Edward (bottom right), Prince Andrew (center) and Princess Anne (top center) found Sandringham to be a tough environment during Christmas.
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Once Charles and Diana split and she no longer had to celebrate Christmas with the royals, Burell tells Marie Claire the princess would spend the holiday alone. “It’s not a day she really relished or looked forward to because she didn’t have anyone with her to enjoy that day with,” he explains.
“I think it would have changed over time,” Burrell adds, musing that perhaps with “a different generation” she might’ve been able to take part. Instead, the late royal would celebrate Christmas with Prince William and Prince Harry “the weekend before.”
He shares one particularly hilarious (and awkward) story about Diana giving Prince William a racy gag gift in his stocking “to make him blush.”
As for Sandringham in 2024, Prince William recently told guests at a military Christmas party that the Royal Family is expecting 45 people for their annual holiday celebration. However, it seems like he might share at least some of his mother’s feelings about the big party, revealing that the one thing he’s looking forward to is “long walks with the family dog” in the Norfolk countryside.
