Prince William reveals where the Queen stood in the great scone debate

Prince William has intervened in Britain’s great scone debate, revealing how the late Queen Elizabeth preferred to have her cream tea.

The royal said her grandmother would take it the “Devonian way” by smearing cream on her scones before adding jam.

But his comments contradict previous statements from former royal chef Darren McGrady, who said the Queen preferred the Cornish tradition of starting with jam.

Speaking to Heart FM’s breakfast show, the Duke of Cornwall said: “I love being the authority on scones. I can only tell you what I learned from my grandmother and she would definitely put the icing on first.

“It tastes delicious either way,” he added.

The long-standing tradition of cream tea dates back to the 11th century. According to the Cream Tea Society, Catherine de Braganza of Portugal was the daughter of World War II. It became popular in 1662, when she married Charles II and brought the tradition of drinking tea with her to the court.

Mr McGrady, who worked for the royal family from 1982 to 1993, wrote about X in 2018: “Play music at Buckingham Palace garden parties first!

“The Queen always had home-made Balmoral jam first,” he added in a later tweet, “with clotted cream on top at garden parties in Buckingham Palace’s royal tea tent and at all royal tea parties.”

In his interview with Heart Radio, Prince William also spoke about his wife Princess Kate, who returned from a royal tour in Italy last week.

The Prince of Wales said he was “taking a step back” from working abroad following his cancer treatment.

He said royal tours can be challenging and it’s important to “make sure he’s OK and rested.”

“She’s a great mother and a great wife; literally our family couldn’t cope without her, so she’s been absolutely amazing, she really is.”