FeaturesRoyal Christmas

The king who was overwhelmed by emotion in a Christmas speech marking an historic year

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12th December 2024
While the Royal Christmas Broadcast is a Christmas Day staple for many people now that it approaches its hundredth anniversary, at one point it was still very new. The first Monarch to speak was King George V, starting in 1932. King George V had had to be convinced to give that first broadcast. However, by 1935 he had become somewhat comfortable with the technologically advanced holiday…
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Palaces & Buildings

Hampton Court Palace celebrates Christmas with Tudor feasting and a Festive Fayre

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9th December 2024
With the holiday season here, palaces and tourist destinations are celebrating far and wide. And the ultimate symbol of Tudor royalty, Hampton Court Palace, has its Festive Fayre. The Fayre allows visitors to enjoy a food wonderland! There will be a number of artisan food and drink vendors to pick from. While people soak in the atmosphere, they can also have some family fun, enjoy live music…
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Queen Elizabeth IIRoyal Christmas

How Queen Elizabeth II made history by taking the Christmas speech to television

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7th December 2024
In 1957, Queen Elizabeth II made history with a big step forward. Queen Elizabeth II made her first Christmas broadcast in 1952, twenty years after her grandfather, King George V, began the tradition. However, in 1957, Queen Elizabeth became the first monarch to make a televised address on Christmas. As her image was beamed into homes around the UK, Queen Elizabeth said…
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British Royals

A Christmas address that brought people together in a time apart

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3rd December 2024
It was one of the most anticipated and historic speeches of a truly historic reign. On Christmas Day 2020, millions listened as Queen Elizabeth II spoke at the most difficult of times. The late Queen had seen Great Britain and the Commonwealth through many of the major moments of the twentieth and twenty first centuries. In 2020, she gave two televised addresses- the first in April and the…
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