At the end of a truly difficult year, Christmas lights, trees and decorations are springing up, and even the shuttered shops haven’t slowed the present buying. What’s behind this race to begin the festive season?
A couple of weeks ago, Christmas was unleashed on the home of Wayne Smith and his family. The tub of chocolates has been opened, Home Alone has been watched and the first Tia Maria and Coke of the season has been poured. The tree is up along with retro foil decorations and lights. This year, the outside of their house in Kent – usually adorned with just a few lights – is covered in multicoloured flashing ones. Then there is the Christmas tree in the garden, the Santa in the window and a projector flashing festive images across the exterior. “I thought it would be a bit more fun,” he says. “It’s been a really horrible year, so we thought we’d try and get in the spirit early. The children are loving it and, because the children are happy, we’re happy, so it’s definitely lifted the mood.”
Across the country, artificial trees are being brought down from lofts, and tinsel and lights are being untangled. “We decided to start now. Let’s bring in that magic, that joy, that hope into the house as early as possible,” says Natalie Miller-Snell, a personal and business coach, whose house now has two trees, as well as other decorations, including stockings by the fireplace and a festive display in the bathroom. She says they decided to “just go all-out really, because it’s been quite a challenging year”. In a normal year, they do not put up the decorations until mid-December, but with her family getting over Covid infections, on top of other stresses, such as falling through the self-employed furlough net, last weekend seemed like the right time to unleash Christmas.