King Charles and royal family's 'unusual' New Year's Eve plans - party games, church outing and more
King Charles and his family are expected to ring in the new year with a series of wholesome traditions.
While it's not known exactly how the monarch intends to celebrate the arrival of 2025, we anticipate that the 76-year-old will replicate previous celebrations and traditions adopted by the late monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.
His Majesty spent the festive period at his Norfolk estate, Sandringham, which is where the late monarch typically rang in the new year with family members, including those who missed out on Christmas celebrations.
Find out more about the significance of Sandringham in the video below...
Party games
As a stickler for tradition, it seems likely that Charles will follow suit and host his own soirée of sorts. Celebrations will likely include a medley of party games that reportedly proved very popular with the late Queen.
Speaking to The Independent, Charles Anson, former press secretary to the late Queen and the royal family, said: "[There is] a long tradition of Christmas and party games – and things like charades have always been popular with the Queen – that started during the war when they were holed up at Windsor and couldn't go out because of the air raids."
Meanwhile, in his book, At Home with the Queen, royal author Brian Hoey, revealed how the royals are huge fans of a rather unusual game involving a tub of sawdust. The game, called "lucky dip," is played on New Year's Eve and involves a tub filled with sawdust and pieces of paper inscribed with predicitions for the new year.
Church outing
Meanwhile, on New Year's Day, the royals usually attend a service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham. It is believed that the remainder of the day is filled with an array of activities such as horseback riding and various outdoor pursuits.
Last year, however, Charles and Camilla switched things up by attending a service on New Year's Eve. The pair were pictured beaming and waving to royal well-wishers who had gathered to catch a glimpse of the couple as they made their way into the church.
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Princess Kate's family plans
Typically, the Prince and Princess of Wales celebrate the occasion with Kate's family in Berkshire.
The mother-of-three's parents Carole and Michael live in a stunning grade II-listed Georgian property complete with seven bedrooms, five receptions rooms, a library, a swimming pool, a tennis court and 18 acres of land. In short, their home Bucklebury Manor, is a dreamy spot for hosting guests.
And given that Kate's siblings Pippa and James live in the vicinity, we imagine that New Year's Eve will be a family affair for the Middleton clan.
Despite not being able to celebrate en masse, the British royals will no doubt be exchanging sweet messages over WhatsApp as the clocks strike midnight. Several members of the royal family are included in a group chat which includes the likes of Mike Tindall and Princess Kate.
A wintry soirée with Stanley Tucci
King Charles will kick off 2025 with a magnificent soirée at his Gloucestershire home, Highgrove House. The monarch and his wife Queen Camilla are set to welcome actor Stanley Tucci into their home after he was asked to curate a very special menu for a dinner celebrating Anglo-Italian relations.
Speaking to The Telegraph, the Devil Wears Prada actor said: "Now, OK, I won't actually be in the kitchen, cooking for him, but the Italian ambassador came to me and said, 'I want to do a meal, and Charles would like you to participate', so I've been coming up with the menu."
The publication reports that the theme of Stanley's royal menu is "slow food and fashion" and will feature tasty delights including roast pork, kale and squash, dishes that the Spotlight actor describes as "all of that nice, wintry, heavier stuff."
