CHRISTMAS PODCASTS

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  A Christmas conversation: The history of midwinter traditions

  Explore the history of the midwinter traditions that extend beyond Christmas Day into the New Year. Discover the alternative name for Boxing Day, why there are 12 days of Christmas and the origins of Christmas carols and gift giving. Plus, we reveal the surprising truth about when you should take your Christmas decorations down.

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  The rise of mead: the world's oldest alcoholic drink

  Once the Vikings’ drink of choice, mead now has a new and growing following of people who are putting a modern twist on the historical classic. To celebrate the revival of this golden brew, we head into the studio with resident expert Cameron Moffett to discover the history of the world’s oldest alcoholic drink. 

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  A weird and wonderful history of Christmas

  English Heritage Trustee Ronald Hutton discussed weird and wonderful Christmas traditions. Listen on to discover the story behind Santa Claus, the yule log and Christmas cards, carols, trees and stockings, not to mention the puzzling traditions of kissing under mistletoe, wassailing, Mummers' plays and the Lord of Misrule.

Victorian Christmas Crafts

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  Make your own: CHRISTMAS CRACKERS

  The Christmas cracker can be traced back to the middle of the 19th century and London confectioner Tom Smith. Smith patented his first cracker in 1847 and perfected the mechanism in the 1860s. It was Smith's son Walter who had the idea of including paper hats and novelty gifts. 

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  Make your own: PIN-PRICK CARDS

  Christmas cards date back to 1843 when civil servant Henry Cole commissioned a card showing a family around a dinner table. The idea caught people’s imaginations and with advances in colour printing technology, the sending of cards had become hugely popular by the 1880s.

   

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  make your own: PAPER FLOWERS

  Making paper flowers was a popular craft activity among wealthy Victorian women. Hundreds of articles from magazines at the time showed how to make elaborate imitation flowers, which were displayed throughout the house and were considered an indispensable personal accessory.

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  More Victorian Christmas Traditions

  From presents to puddings, you can bet Queen Victoria had something to do with their history. In fact, the Victorian age played a big part in establishing the traditions of Christmas we still practice today. Discover just how important the Victorians were in the celebration of Christmas.