Royal Parks Beg Queen Elizabeth’s Mourners to Stop Leaving Marmalade Sandwiches
This article originally appeared on Clean Eating
A sticky situation has arisen in the United Kingdom as mourners of Queen Elizabeth have gone above and beyond in leaving mementos and tokens in London's Green Park, just outside Buckingham Palace. While the park has been designated as the spot to leave items and pay respect to the late Queen, authorities didn't take into consideration the effect it would have on wildlife.
The tributes causing the most trouble are marmalade sandwiches, an item the Royal Parks organization begs people not to leave in Green Park. The sandwiches are an ode to a special moment shared between the Queen and fictional character Paddington Bear. In a short sketch made for the 2022 Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth and Paddington bonded over their mutual affection for marmalade sandwiches.
In the short, Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw) enjoys tea with the Queen and offers her a marmalade sandwich which he always keeps in his hat for emergencies.
"Me too," the Queen replies, taking a sandwich out of her handbag. "I'm saving mine here... for later."
While she most likely never carried sandwiches in her purse, the Queen did have marmalade on toast for breakfast, along with cold cereal (rumored to be Special K) and Earl Gray tea.
As sweet as the moment between the Queen and Paddington was, it might not be sweeter than the actual marmalade bubbling over in the hot sun at Green Park. Besides attracting wildlife, the sandwiches are also usually bagged in plastic, meaning litter is collecting in the park.
“Unfortunately, it turns out that the sandwiches have a negative impact on the inhabitants of the park,” the Royal Parks told Yahoo! News UK. "We are asking people not to leave marmalade sandwiches because of the negative impact on the park's wildlife… Our priority at the moment is to manage the huge volume of flowers and tributes that are being left in the Green Park floral tribute garden.”
Visitors are technically still allowed to leave non-floral gifts in the park, but the Royal Parks organization would prefer if people left plush Paddington Bears at home, which are becoming an equally significant problem.
To honor the Queen's memory right at home, you can make our homemade Clementine & Pomegranate Marmalade. This tangy, fresh preserve can be served on bread, on whole-wheat crackers with cheese, or stirred into Greek yogurt.
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