News | Entertainment
25 Nov 2025 13:36
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Prince William used to "get the giggles" during the royal family's annual Christmas church service

    The British royals traditionally spend the festive season at Queen Elizabeth's Sandringham Estate and many well-wishers turn out on 25 December to watch the family walk to nearby St. Mary Magdalene Church, and the 39-year-old royal has fond memories of getting distracted during the sermon by his cousins when he was younger


    Explaining how the pews inside face one another, William said: "And what's very good about it is that we sit opposite each other as a family, and growing up, having my cousins sat opposite me has always been quite difficult to keep a straight face at times.

    "I have had the giggles many, many times in the service. Luckily, no one's filming it. So you can get away with it, and on Christmas Day, it's fun to have a giggle and enjoy yourself."

    William finds the walk from Sandringham House to the church "very soothing".

    Speaking on Apple Fitness+'s 'Time to Walk' series, William - whose walk took him through the Sandringham estate, past the church and eventually to Anmer, where he and wife Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, have a home - said: "My family spend their Christmases in Norfolk at Sandringham, which is in the UK. Walking along here, you've got big pine trees that are quite synonymous with this part of Norfolk. And I love the smell of pine in the winter. It's very soothing.

    "As we're walking along here, it's been a walk that my family have done for many, many years on the way to church on Christmas Day. It must be at least 25 years by now."

    And the stroll reminds William of his late grandfather, Prince Philip, who died in April aged 99.

    He said: "I have strong memories of walking down here, and my grandfather, he used to walk so fast that there'd be huge gaps and spaces between all of us walking down, and there'd be us at the back with little legs trying to keep up.

    "You know, I think, over time, you start to feel quite attached to those moments and those memories before.”

    © 2025 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     25 Nov: Liev Schreiber has been hospitalised in New York after suffering a health scare
     25 Nov: Penn Badgley and Domino Kirke almost broke up after their second miscarriage
     25 Nov: Cynthia Erivo was forced to skip interviews at the Wicked: For Good premiere after losing her voice
     25 Nov: Billy Bob Thornton's marriage to Angelina Jolie was "one of the greatest times" of his life
     25 Nov: Claire Danes felt a "funny shame" when she got pregnant at 44
     25 Nov: Lala Kent hopes Tom Sandoval has been able to "move on" from his 2023 cheating scandal
     25 Nov: Tom Hanks is "really big on stocking stuffers"
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    Darts player Haupai Puha has pinned his current target More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Risky business: how small firms can be caught in the trade sanctions crossfire More...



     Today's News

    Cricket:
    Not much changes between formats for Blair Tickner - included in the 14-strong Black Caps squad for next week's opening cricket test against the West Indies in Christchurch 13:27

    Living & Travel:
    Advice for people keen to score a bed on a popular Great Walk, with several at sellout level 13:17

    Entertainment:
    Liev Schreiber has been hospitalised in New York after suffering a health scare 13:08

    Business:
    Risky business: how small firms can be caught in the trade sanctions crossfire 13:07

    Basketball:
    Max Darling will miss the Tall Blacks' basketball World Cup Qualifiers against the Australian Boomers with concussion 13:07

    Law and Order:
    Two more men have been arrested in relation to a suspected homicide in Waikanae 12:47

    Entertainment:
    Penn Badgley and Domino Kirke almost broke up after their second miscarriage 12:38

    Entertainment:
    Cynthia Erivo was forced to skip interviews at the Wicked: For Good premiere after losing her voice 12:08

    Law and Order:
    Police have revealed an 11-year-old was one of two who drowned off Whangarei's coast 11 days ago 11:57

    Accident and Emergency:
    Rescue teams are still working - in challenging alpine conditions - to recover the bodies of two climbers who died on Aoraki Mount Cook late last night 11:47


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2025 New Zealand City Ltd