Every year, royal Christmas offers the British monarchy something increasingly rare: a moment of uncomplicated goodwill.
The Christmas Day walk to church at Sandringham has become one of the few occasions when the royal family can present itself as exactly what it wants the public to see: a family. Warm coats, polished smiles, children in tow, beaming well-wishers queueing for hours just to get a glimpse of the procession…it’s pure media magic.
That magic hasn’t always been so carefully staged. In earlier decades, the walk looked more functional than photogenic; whatever kept everyone warm would do.
But over time, the optics have sharpened. Since 2011 in particular, Catherine, now Princess of Wales, has become the visual anchor of the event. Her habit of coordinating her family’s outfits creates cohesion within the larger group and subtly reinforces the idea that there is a stable, relatable family unit at the center of the monarchy.
This year, especially, nothing can be allowed to pull focus from that image. The monarchy is in obvious need of a distraction-free moment of connection. That intent is clear, even if achieving it will be an uphill battle.
Late last week, a new tranche of heavily redacted documents connected to the U.S. Department of Justice’s investigations into Jeffrey Epstein was released, following a congressional mandate requiring their disclosure by December 19. Among the thousands of files was a photograph of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor lying across the laps of unidentified women, with Ghislaine Maxwell visible in the background. The image appears to have been taken in the saloon room at Sandringham itself… AKA, the very estate that serves as the symbolic heart of a royal Christmas.
Other images in the release reportedly show Andrew at Royal Ascot in the company of Epstein and Maxwell, while two additional photos include his former wife, Sarah Ferguson, alongside women whose faces have been obscured.
The renewed attention comes after Andrew was stripped of his remaining titles and honours this fall, but the revelation of these images ensures that he remains, once again, a destabilizing presence in the public conversation. And it’s a particularly uncomfortable narrative given the setting in which at least one of them was taken.
But the show must go on. As they have for an entire generation, the royal family will travel roughly 100 miles north of London to Sandringham for Christmas. The estate sprawls across some 20,000 acres of Norfolk countryside, encompassing farmland, woodland, orchards, and a sawmill. Scattered across the estate are smaller residences, including Amner Hall, the country home of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Read more about the history of Sandringham here:
All about Sandringham House
As they have for an entire generation, the Royal Family will make the trek 100 miles north of London to Sandringham for the upcoming holiday.
Christmas at Sandringham follows a rhythm that has barely changed since the Victorian era. Festivities begin on Christmas Eve with afternoon tea, often served in the ornate saloon, followed by informal gift exchanges inspired by the German tradition of Heiligabend Bescherung. These gifts are famously inexpensive and distributed in strict order of family hierarchy.
Christmas Day itself brings the now-iconic walk to the Church of St Mary Magdalene, followed by drinks, a traditional lunch of turkey and all the trimmings, and a flaming Christmas pudding served at precisely 2 p.m. Later comes the monarch’s televised address, afternoon tea, and a buffet-style supper. Boxing Day typically includes a shooting party on the estate (in itself now a tradition steeped in controversy).
If reading about royal Christmas traditions has you craving a little festive escapism of your own, this is your reminder that I’m hosting a Christmas Markets trip through Germany and the Czech Republic in December 2026!
Booking is open now, with both solo and shared rooms available. If you’ve ever wanted to step inside the kind of winter scene the royals themselves have long romanticized, this is your chance to do it—no titles required.
Importantly (and awkwardly), “the royal family” has long included Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah Ferguson at Christmastime as a matter of course; the pair have continued to attend holiday events at Sandringham regularly, even if kept out of public view. They can often be found staying at Wood Farm on the estate alongside their daughters and grandchildren for the holiday.
Reports that Andrew and Sarah, along with Beatrice and Eugenie, have been “banned” from this year’s Christmas celebrations have been scattershot and speculative. I also don’t think we can discount Charles loosening the hold that the monarch once held over their family’s free time here; in-laws and extended non-royal family, in his version of the monarchy, deserve to see their family, too. Beatrice and Eugenie, in particular, have regularly celebrated elsewhere since starting their own families.
But regardless of who exactly gets a seat at the table and a Christmas cracker, Andrew, looming over the festivities, continues to underscore the tension between blood family, tradition, and optics.