In Glastonbury, the festive season does not really begin until a sprig is taken from the holy thorn tree and sent to the Queen.

It is a tradition dating back generations with the sprig being sent to Balmoral to put on the monarch's Christmas table.

The oldest child from St John's Infants School will take the cutting from the thorn in St John's churchyard in the centre of the town, aided by the Mayor and there will be a brief blessing by the Vicar.

This year, the ceremony will take place on Wednesday December 13 starting at 10am.

The tradition of sending a cutting, which dates back to Charles I, is to remind the Royals of the historic ties between them, Glastonbury and the church.

According to legend - which some historians dispute - Joseph of Arimathea visited Glastonbury with the Holy Grail and thrust his staff into Wearyall Hill, which then grew into the original thorn tree.

But following the English Civil War, the execution of Charles I, and the replacement of the monarchy with the Commonwealth of England, Oliver Cromwell ordered that the tree be cut down on the grounds that it was a relic of superstition.

Legend says that as it fell, its thorns blinded the axe man in one eye. However, as with all good stories, it did not end there and local people protected and cultivated the tree in secret until such a time when a new chapter for the Holy Thorn could begin.

The tradition of sending a sprig from the Holy Thorn to the British monarch was revived in 1922 when Queen Mary consented to receive a cutting.