Where are our British Christmas traditions going?

[RabbitsNBears]

I can’t help but feel ever so sad about the wonderful Christmas traditions we grew up with are disappearing. It's like we are raising our young ones in the USA. Who is “Santa”? In my day he was called Father Christmas. What is this elf on the shelf nonsense, as far as I can tell he teaches our grandchildren that misbehaving is amusing, not the old fashioned lessons of behaving as Father Christmas knows if you’ve been good or bad. And don’t even get me started on how my DIL had the grandchildren leaving “Santa” cookies and milk. What’s wrong with a glass of brandy and a mince pie?

My DDs literally cannot find a nativity set or a beautiful angel for the top of their trees.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=nativity+set&crid=1ZRP96E62CKZ6&sprefix=nativity+s%2Caps%2C337&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=chritmas+tree+angel&crid=35PPLPS396J33&sprefix=chritmas+tree+angel%2Caps%2C113&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

We have enjoyed creating our own traditions as a family, hopefully some of them will be carried on by our kids

One of our neighbours has a big old light up nativity above their front door. Right mash up of traditions there.

Santa and Father Christmas are interchangeable. People use both op!

Cookies and milk is more fun to leave out, probably, as children don’t want mice pies and cant have brandy.

Elf on the shelf is harmless fun

I broadly agree with aspects of British culture being eroded but your examples are rubbish

🤣🤣🤣

I'm 51 and it was always Santa who came and it was milk, carrot and cookies.
Ps
I never understood why it was only Rudolf who got a carrot, what about the others 😂

I'm Irish and I've been known to complain about him being called Santa. It was Santy in my day.

Thank you! These all seem nice. Clearly my DDs are either v bad at shopping, or what they really want are the exact ones that I have - I suspect, the latter, but Woolworths is no more…

I suppose I was referring to the garden centre decorations emporia which I’ve visited this year - no signs of Jesus, Mary, Joseph or the wee donkey, and I did look hard!

I am early 40s and it has always been Santa (Admittedly I am Irish).
Elf on the shelf, I agree with you to a point but every generation creates their own tradition.
Father Christmas/Santa is in charge of the sled. He cannot drink and drive. Gives good example. To be honest I can not understand why anyone would be stressed out about what is left out for father Christmas/Santa

You come across as stuck in the past and quite frankly a nightmare of a mil.

It was Father Christmas/St Nick or Nicholas in my original patch of NW England (quite an old-fashioned, fairly conservative village) when I was little. I think that I originally came across "Santa Claus" in American films.

In this bit of North Wales, it's Siôn Corn. He is happy to drink brandy, but only the decent stuff (not the cheap makes or Bell's Fine Whisky that my grandmother used to poison us with if we admitted to being ill at her house). I see more than enough milk on a daily basis on a dairy farm, and I get headaches from drinking too much of it, so brandy it is!

Perhaps FC has taken on too much sherry in the past, and now AA has suggested milk as an alternative.

I’m nearly 60 and he was always Santa when I was growing up with Scottish parents.

Just saw about a dozen different Nativity Sets in TK Max this afternoon.
I am sure you can also find them easily on Etsy

54 and have always called him Santa. I have a card from him in 1977 (post office reply one) and its signed Santa claus.

Our house does not buy mince pies because no one likes them and as we dont drink its milk all the way, and has been for 35+yrs.

The rlf on the shelf is bloody scary to look at and we thankfully never went down that rabbit hole, but only because I can't be arsed to do that every year. We have lots if friends who LOVE doing it. I dont believe it encourages bad behaviour!

Traditions have to start 'somewhere'. We have a bauble tradition which is just our immediate family, no one else in our family/friends do it, but it doesn't make that wrong!

We all know Santa likes shortbread and whisky.

When I was a child he was called Father Christmas and when DP was a child he was called Santa, he is called Santa in our house because DP couldn’t get his head around Father Christmas! The Elf returns to Santa/Father Christmas every evening after the child has gone to bed, to report to Santa. My DC believe the Elf is watching them and reporting whether they have been good or bad. We leave Santa a mince pie and a beer or can of coke because my DC have never heard of brandy, and a carrot for Reindeer. We don’t do Christmas Eve boxes because I don’t have time for bath night, hot chocolate and a movie on Christmas Eve evening.

I’m a huge old fashioned traditionalist but at 41, even I’ve always known him as Santa Claus! Do you honestly expect your grandchildren to be calling him Father Christmas at school? They’ll cause all kinds of confusion. Even my 81yr old mum has just said it was always Santa Claus when she was a kid in the 40s & early 50s….

Have you tried The Entertainer the owners are religious and they had some nativity things a few years ago my neice worked their.

It’s been sold now!

You are joking aren't you and I'm missing it?

The poster was being sarcastic about the OP being 'pretty old', because based on the AI summary, she'd have to predate Victorian times to think that the use of Santa is a new thing...

Still Father Christmas down here and the kids I know put out a mince pie, a bottle of beer and a carrot. Local pub is selling Christmas beer from a local brewery (also more bizarrely dog beer???)

I'm 40.

Always called him Santa.

Always left milk and biscuits for Santa (we had dogs so parents didn't want to leave mince pies or alcohol out which are both poisonous to dogs).

Yes elf is a new one - but there's nothing wrong in making new traditions as well. Our elves dont encourage naughtiness, just fun.

Oh has it ? I didn't know that.

What’s wrong with a glass of brandy

Santa is driving. Don't be so irresponsible.

Brandy???

Santa gets a sherry, you heretic!

Different traditions are so interesting though. We used to live in a country that didn't really do Christmas, but celebrated New Year. "Father Snow" and his wife featured, dressed in blue rather than red.