The festive season presents a wonderful chance for the royal family to reunite at Sandringham.

However, there have been mixed feelings about the annual celebrations in the past.

Ingrid Seward, Editor-in-Chief of Majesty Magazine, revealed that Princess Diana used to feel apprehensive about the royal Christmas gatherings.

In a recent interview with The Sun's Royal Exclusive, photographer Arthur Edwards shared insights about Camilla's holiday traditions.

Edwards revealed, "For many years, our Queen Camilla, she would leave after [Christmas] lunch and go and spend time with her own family down in Wiltshire."

Seward added, "Well, Diana used to leave after lunch."

"When things were really not going at all well, she was to dread these royal family Christmases."

"And sometimes she escaped even before lunch and just did the church."

"Not always but a few times I remember yes, I remember her passing me on the motorway coming back once," Arthur said.

According to Andrew Morton, it is known that the late Princess of Wales did not particularly enjoy celebrating the holiday season with the royal family members.

As Richard Dalton shared in Kitty Kelly's book "The Royals," "The princess just hated going to Sandringham for Christmas."

"She told me it was freezing cold and dinner had to be over by 3 o'clock. 'It's 3 and time to watch me on TV,' she'd say, imitating you-know-who."

"The Royal Family had to watch the Queen's Christmas message on television.

"Diana said it was a command performance."

In the pages of "Diana: Her True Story" by Andrew Morton, a striking moment was revealed when the mom-of-two expressed doubts about the role of the royals in a united Europe, leaving her dinner companions, including the Queen, taken aback.

"The Queen, Prince Charles and the rest of the Royal Family looked at her as if she were mad and continued with their debate on who shot the last pheasant of the day, a discussion which occupied the rest of the evening."

According to Diana's friends, she perceived the monarchy as suffocating and out of touch with contemporary society and its challenges. She reportedly saw the institution as antiquated and forewarned that the royal family could face unexpected difficulties ahead if they failed to evolve with the times.

As time passed, tensions escalated in Diana's relationship with Charles, leading to a growing strain on their marriage.

Their final Christmas at Sandringham in December 1991 marked a poignant moment before they officially decided to part ways on December 9, 1992.

Following her split from Charles, Diana faced another setback as she spent her initial Christmas apart from her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry.

Meanwhile, the young boys, aged 11 and nine then, were required to attend the customary royal practice of assembling at Sandringham with the Queen and other royals to celebrate the festive season.

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Princess Diana, Royal family, Royal uk