Christmas with the Chelsea Pensioners
Christmas with the Chelsea Pensioners
From carols in the Soane Stable Yard to decorations in the Margaret Thatcher Infirmary, the Royal Hospital Chelsea have been busy preparing for the festive season.
Christmas is a magical time here, with a strong sense of community and tradition bringing our 300 residents together. As part of the lead up to Christmas, we’ve been reflecting on the qualities that help make the Royal Hospital Chelsea such a unique place to live. We caught up with four of our wonderful Chelsea Pensioners, Barbara, Paul, John and Jim, to hear their thoughts on the festivities.
Tour guide Barbara is a Christmas enthusiast and gets involved with all festivities,
"It's a bit of a Cliché, but it's a fairy tale experience here with all the different activities going on. We have so many traditions, but not only that, the carol services as well, they are magnificent."
Since her arrival at the Hospital two and a half years ago, Barbara has gone above and beyond with sharing the Christmas spirit. Each year she surprises the pensioners and staff with an inflatable costume on Christmas jumper day,
"The first year I came as a Christmas tree and the second year I came as a gingerbread person. I've got a new one for this year”.
Designed by Sir Christopher Wren and Sir John Soane, the Royal Hospital is a grand collection of buildings that become truly extraordinary during December. The Christmas trees are dressed, decorations fill the grounds, and the atmosphere is decidedly festive.
Chelsea Pensioner Paul was blown away by his first Christmas at the Royal Hospital, "Last year was my first year here so I really didn't know what to expect and when I walked into the Great Hall and saw it all laid out, it was literally like walking into the Hogwarts dining room.”
There’s a tangible energy during this period and Paul describes the atmosphere with the other Pensioners, “we're all predominantly grumpy old men and to see people coming in on Christmas Day and getting in the spirit of it, it's fantastic, it's really uplifting, (...) it's good for morale.”
The Royal Hospital has several enduring traditions that take place during this time of year, including the ceremony of the Christmas cheeses and the cutting of the Christmas cake. The first big event in the calendar is the stirring of the Christmas pudding, an 80-year tradition that's still a highlight of the season. The Chelsea Pensioners and staff come together to add ingredients to a giant mixing bowl that, when cooked, is served to the Chelsea Pensioners on Christmas day.
John is new to the Royal Hospital and is excited to see if the ceremony lives up to expectations.
"It's certainly going to be different. I mean, I've only heard the stories. I'm looking forward to the mixing of the cake and noting how many bottles of the spirit they put in!"
Chelsea Pensioner Jim enjoys the atmosphere at the Hospital around Christmas, visiting the Chelsea Pensioner Club and spending time with friends. There’s one tradition that Jim insists on,
“You've got to have your turkey. I don't care what anyone says nowadays. I'm still old-fashioned in that way. It must be a turkey dinner.”
We know that the festive period can often be isolating for veterans and the Royal Hospital works to reduce this where we can.
The Chelsea Pensioners urge veterans feeling lonely to get in touch, attend events and join the Old Comrades online community.
Old Comrades user Paul says, “We're here for you and if you're lonely and you want somebody to talk to, I'm not doing anything on Christmas Day. If you need someone to chat, I can't guarantee I'll be very sober, but I've got a computer, and I can talk to you.”
Find out more about the Old Comrades online community here.