Yo ho ho oh no …. Brits are festive flops when it comes to the history of Christmas, according to new research.
One in seven UK adults believes Father Christmas – whose origins are believed to go back to the 16th Century – was invented by Coca-Cola.
And over a quarter think the Queen started the royal Christmas speech – even though she was only SIX when the first one was broadcast.
One in five reckons advent calendars are purely there to allow us to “enjoy chocolate in the lead-up to Christmas”.
And one in 10 thinks Sir Cliff Richard is the reason carols are so popular at Christmas.
The Crimbo cluelessness was revealed in a survey of 2,000 Brits conducted by leading consumer research specialists www.OnePoll.com.
Although 76 per cent of respondents claimed to feel “confident” about their knowledge of Christmas and its traditions, the details let many down. Challenged to name a traditionally festive food, one in 10 listed PEACOCK.
And when asked why they celebrate Christmas, marking the birth of Jesus was only the SECOND most popular reason, behind “enjoying quality time with my family”. A non-committal one in five admitted they only celebrated Christmas “because everyone else does”.
But in some areas we do know our seasonal stuff – almost 80 per cent said the reason we decorate our trees with stars and angels is because of their part in the Christmas story.
A spokesman for OnePoll said: “The season of goodwill may be upon us – but it seems that these days, it also includes blissful ignorance. “We can’t imagine many British families will be sitting down to roast peacock on Christmas Day.
“We certainly know how to enjoy ourselves at this time of year but we seem to be forgetting some of the tradition associated with Christmas.” Are you a Christmas cracker or a total turkey?
