The festive season is almost in full swing, and we can't wait to catch an Xmas show we just know the whole family will love... Horrible Histories Horrible Christmas, we're talking about you!
The fun-packed, horrible mad capers kicked off today and run until 30th December here in London, and we can't wait to take a break from eating mince pies and seeing it ourselves tomorrow. In the meantime here are 10 less than savoury facts about Christmas as a taster from Horrible Histories...
William the Conqueror was crowned on Christmas Day but when the guards outside heard a huge cheer they thought a rebellion had started and burnt all the houses in the area.
In Greenland they eat a Christmas delicacy called Kiviak which is the body of a seal filled with hundreds of small birds left to ferment for three months. Bleugh.
In 1644 the Puritans banned Christmas, mince pies and going to church (unless it was a Sunday) and ordered all shops to stay open. Bah, Humbug!
In a town in Sweden the people celebrate Christmas by burning down a giant figure of a goat.
The reason that carol singers knock on your door is because Medieval priests threw them out of the church and destined to sing on the street forevermore.
An old English custom was to beat children on 28th December to remind them of Herod’s cruel massacre of all the babies in Bethlehem. We're not sure why this ever would have needed to be a thing!
Nativity scenes in Catalonia feature a character doing a poo: we poo you not.
The Good King Wenceslas celebrated in the carol was a Duke at all but was actually a king who was chopped into pieces by his mother and brother.
The first ever bomb to land on British soil was dropped by a German airship at Christmastime during 1914. Horrible.
Brussels sprouts are first mentioned in books in 1587 and children have had to suffer them at Christmas ever since.
Tell me more
When Christmas comes under threat from a jolly man dressed in red, it’s up to one young courageous boy to save the day – but can he save Christmas? From Victorian villains to Medieval monks, Puritan parties to Tudor treats, you'll love this hair-raising adventure through the history of Christmas along with Charles Dickens, Oliver Cromwell, King Henry VIII and St Nicholas to name but a few.
All the deets
If you want even more Horrible then book your tix, stat!
When: 27-30th December 2022 Where: London Barbican Hall, 2pm Cost: Tickets from £16.50-£30.00 www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2022/event/horrible-histories-horrible-christmas
Top image: Richard Haughton
Need some more very merry guides to the festive season? Look no further: