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Original poster

Picture Advent Calendars in the 1980s

87 replies

FurForksSake · 23/12/2025 22:19

DH and I have just had a festive discussion : disagreement.

AIBU to ask you - if you had a picture advent calendar as a child, we are mid 40s so perhaps in that era or before or after, did you get a new picture advent calendar every year, or reused the one you were given for years (decades..)

if you remember - what was the scene in your advent calendar / favourite calendar?

OP posts:
DramaAlpaca · 23/12/2025 23:39

We had a new one every year, loved them. My sibling and I shared one and took turns opening the little doors.

I remember my first chocolate advent calendar. My friend moved to Germany when we were 13 and sent me one. I was thrilled, it was so exciting because I'd never seen one before. This would've been around 1977.

SatsumaCandlesCloves · 23/12/2025 23:34

We had new picture ones and I loved them I got them for DC until mil got her the cheap nasty fake Cadbury and of course she prefers that.

PandoraAvatar · 23/12/2025 23:31

We had a beautiful wooden one that we reused each year. We also had a chocolate one each year too.

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 23/12/2025 23:29

A new one every year - otherwise the doors would already be open?

Once my Mum accidentally got one with only writing inside the windows and no picture - and I was so young I couldn’t read!

BooksAndHooks · 23/12/2025 23:24

Reused I think. We had a big Rudolph / sleigh one on the wall that we used for years and really wish we still had.

stargirl1701 · 23/12/2025 23:21

We got a new one each year.

Vitriolinsanity · 23/12/2025 23:19

For all the nostalgia, I bloody loved DS’s Star Wars advent calendar era.

CoffeeCakeAndALattePlease · 23/12/2025 23:19

I don’t remember picture calendars like this at all - completely passed me by!

born 1980 and only remember chocolate ones.

PullTheBricksDown · 23/12/2025 23:19

Am I making this up, or was day 6 Santa because the 6th is St Nicholas's day? I am going to have to get one next year.

randomchap · 23/12/2025 23:17

One of my friends still has the same one from the mid 80s. His children open it with him.

Countsounds · 23/12/2025 23:16

Reused each year. Christmas eve was a double window! Loved it, but not as much as the card christmas house, with a hole at the bottom for small presents and the fake snow fluffy roof. Knowing after xmas lunch there was a little present there for everyone was so exciting.

plsdontlookatme · 23/12/2025 23:15

90s baby of strict parents - we reused the same picture calendar every year, taking it in turns to open the doors. Quite wholesome in a way, but now that the old gits have softened with age and I'm an adult we do all have chocolate advent calendars!

AdventureAnonymous · 23/12/2025 23:15

I was born in 1987 and always had picture calendars growing up (a new one each year) - I loathed them at the time, though -- all my friends had chocolate ones and I wasn't allowed (my sister was allergic and so it would've been unfair if I had chocolate when she couldn't - makes sense as an adult but as a kid I was infuriated 😅)
Now that I'm not a grumpy teen, I quite like the picture calendars and do sometimes buy them.

This year, though, I've got a coffee advent calendar which makes me very happy!

Thatcannotberight · 23/12/2025 23:15

Mine was reused for several years. Late 60s to early 70s. A triptych nativity scene, the first two doors were large double barn type windows, one was a snowy scene with trees and one was a snowy scene with deer amongst the trees. Door 24 was the baby Jesus in the manger.

RowenaCoxwell · 23/12/2025 23:14

Same advent calendar for years- my mum used to iron the doors shut. We took it in turns to open the doors. Pictures were things like holly, or a candle but the best picture was a little robin.

Girliefriendlikespuppies · 23/12/2025 23:10

My aunt and uncle used to send me one, I bought myself a picture one this year just for the nostalgia.

Theslummymummy · 23/12/2025 23:08

1988 here, me and my brothers got them for years. My gran would send them. Little Robin on a fence, snowman etc

SouthernNights59 · 23/12/2025 23:06

My mother still gave them to me as an adult, and it was a new one every year. My favourite was the Nativity, double door, scene.

Taweofterror · 23/12/2025 23:02

New one every year but my mum has a book with an advent calendar in it that comes out every year (and that started in childhood!)

Boolabus · 23/12/2025 22:49

We made one each year. There were 4 kids so we each had 6 small pictures to draw, gave them to our mum who put it all together. There was great excitement each morning to see whose picture it was behind each door and what had they drawn. Aw innocent times

IAmKerplunk · 23/12/2025 22:48

Born in 1976 - a new picture advent calendar every year. Lots f glitter on it. Loved it! Didn’t get a chocolate one till I was 14/15

1apenny2apenny · 23/12/2025 22:48

New one each year from Grandparents, took turns to open the doors. 24th always a double door nativity scene iirc. I loved the simplicity and the gitter of them.

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 23/12/2025 22:47

I was born 86 and we definitely re-used them
I actually bought a picture advent calendar this yr and it is really lovely.

Notthisagainyouidiot · 23/12/2025 22:46

@maximist that's my childhood advent calendar ! Came out every year, I loved it .

ErrolTheDragon · 23/12/2025 22:45

We had the same one for several years….I really didn’t see the point tbh. But then we started to get chocolate ones, much better and iirc the packet then had some sort of game on it. This was 60s/70s.