Festivities begin with the stirring of the Christmas Pudding
3rd December 2018
The Christmas period officially got underway today at the Royal Hospital, as the Chelsea Pensioners took part in the tradition of stirring in the ingredients for the Christmas pudding.
Proceedings started with the blessing of the ingredients by the Royal Hospital's Chaplain, Rev. Steven Brookes before the Governor, General Sir Adrian Bradshaw, got things underway by pouring the first ingredients into the vat.
The tradition, which dates back over 80 years, sees the Chelsea Pensioners gathering together to mix-in the ingredients. Typically, the Pensioners mix enough ingredients for 75 individual Christmas puddings, the list of ingredients includes: 70 eggs, nearly three kilograms of flour, five kilograms of currants, 14 pints of Guinness and two bottles of: rum, sherry, brandy and port.
Once all the ingredients have been added, the Chelsea Pensioners join with staff members to sing Christmas Carols and other festive favourites, accompanied by live music.
Following the ceremony, the Christmas Puddings are prepared by the catering team and then made available to all Chelsea Pensioners over the Christmas period.
