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When England cancelled Christmas – Country Life

No feasting. No drinking. No celebrations. Ian Morton explores what the festive period was like when Oliver Cromwell’s Christmas clampdown gripped the nation. Why do we celebrate Christ’s birth in late December? All ancient cultures recognised the winter solstice. The Romans spent the seven days of Saturnalia in feasting and carousing, upending normality with masquerades, […]

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Aled Jones on his favourite Christmas carol

Aled Jones speaks to Country Life about his favourite Christmas carols and Christmas traditions. Aled Jones became a household name when his recording of ‘Walking in the Air’ — Howard Blake’s haunting tune, originally written for the iconic adaptation of The Snowman by Raymond Briggs — became a top 10 hit in 1985. His step into the limelight […]

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