What the Queen buys her staff for Christmas
Ever wondered how the Queen thanks her 550-odd staff members for a year of hard work at Buckingham Palace? With a Christmas gift of course!
But coordinating presents for so many people isn’t easy – hell, it isn’t even easy when you’re doing it for just family and friends! So, Her Majesty has a clever little trick to make sure all her workers are happy with their gift.
Every year – sometimes as early as March – employees who have been serving the royals for one year or more receive an email asking what they would like from the Queen for Christmas. Naturally, shopping for so many people would be a time-consuming feat, so employees can only choose a voucher – they can receive either a gift token or a book token.
According to The Sun, junior staff generally receive a voucher worth £28 ($50). Although this value increases with each year of employment, the tokens are capped at £35 ($62).
There’s also a strict way in which the gifts are distributed – could you expect any less from the royals? Senior household staff go first, called by their boss (the Lord Chamberlain) and then step forward to have their present handed to them personally by Her Majesty. Senior employees are followed by clerks, then domestic workers and gardeners.
Between them, royal staff are also rumoured to be given around 1,500 Christmas puddings between them. Yum!