Former Royal Chef Reveals That "Even Princess Diana" Didn't Celebrate This "Silly Holiday"

Princess Diana wearing a red suit holding flowers talking to fans

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Members of the Royal Family have their own special ways of celebrating holidays—take the German tradition of opening gifts on Christmas Eve. But according to former royal chef Darren McGrady, there's one holiday that was rarely marked at the palace.

Sharing his insights with Smooth Spins Casino, McGrady, who previously worked for Queen Elizabeth and Princess Diana, says that Valentine's Day wasn't celebrated in any special way by the royals in the '80s and '90s.

Although Diana was a famous Americanophile and adopted a number of more modern traditions and viewpoints at the palace, McGrady says his former boss didn't order up a romantic meal for Valentine's Day.

"They didn’t celebrate Valentine’s at all," he shares of the Royal Family. "It was a silly holiday for them, I think. Absolutely not something that the Royal Family celebrated, even Princess Diana on that one."

Princess Diana wearing a pink suit and smiling — Princess Diana is pictured in 1995.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle kissing at a table; Prince William kissing Princess Kate's cheek sitting on a blanket — The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Prince and Princess of Wales both marked Valentine's Day with new photos on social media last year.

"It’s not a proper holiday, and food-wise, it’s not really something you celebrate with a foodie thing," McGrady added.

As for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, the former royal chef said, "I know for a fact that the [late] Queen or Prince Philip wouldn’t have gone out or requested a special meal for Valentine’s Day. Princess Diana certainly didn't."

In February 2025, Diana's former butler Paul Burrell echoed the sentiment, telling Marie Claire, "Do you know what reminds me of Valentine's Day, is the fact that the royals never acknowledged it. It was never a day for the Royal Family, [more of] a day for the people."

While it seems that palace life in the '80s and '90s didn't support Valentine's Day outings, modern royals are now embracing the holiday. In 2025, both Prince William and Princess Kate and Meghan Markle and Prince Harry shared sweet kissing photos on social media to mark Valentine's Day—a first for the Royal Family.

TOPICS

Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.