Why do we put out mince pies and carrots for Santa?
Many families across the UK will be leaving a few treats out on Christmas Eve for Santa and his reindeer to enjoy when they stop by.
Some will also leave a glass of milk out, others some cookies, and even a festive candy cane is an option.
There is a general tradition of leaving stuff out that dates back to the feast day of Saint Nicholas, which is actually on 6 December.
Children would leave food and drink out for the saint and family would exchange them for gifts overnight – which we now do with modern Christmas celebrations.
Britain’s top 15 favourite Christmas songs revealed
Nothing beats a good Christmas jingle and every year Brits have dozens of beloved tunes to choose from.
According to research by Betway, here are the country’s top 15 festive songs:
- Last Christmas, Wham! and All I Want For Christmas Is You, Mariah Carey
- It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas, Michael Buble
- Santa Tell Me, Ariana Grande
- Do They Know It’s Christmas, Band Aid and Mistletoe, Justin Bieber
- Merry Christmas Everyone, Shakin’ Stevens
- Fairytale Of New York, Pogues Ft Kirsty Maccoll
- Underneath The Tree, Kelly Clarkson
- Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree, Brenda Lee
- Happy Xmas (War Is Over), John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band and Jingle Bell Rock, Bobby Helms
- Holly Jolly Christmas, Michael Buble
- One More Sleep, Leona Lewis and Wonderful Christmastime, Paul Mccartney
- It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year, Andy Williams
- Lonely This Christmas, Mud
- I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday, Wizzard
- Let It Snow Let It Snow Let It Snow, Dean Martin and Mary’s Boy Child/Oh My Lord, Boney M
Ten films to watch this Christmas
Here is a list of some great films to watch this festive season.
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- Elf
- Home Alone
- A Christmas Carol
- Die Hard
- Batman Returns
- Love Actually
- Polar Express
- The Harry Potter franchise
- Santa Claus
Norad isn’t the only way to track Santa
Google also runs its own Santa Tracker.
The tracker itself will go live today, it is Christmas Eve after all.
Before it begins, you can follow along with the countdown and enjoy some Christmas games on the website ahead of time here.
Where does Father Christmas live?
No one can be completely sure of his permanent address.
But some people argue he lives in the North Pole and others in Lapland.
Perhaps he has a home in both?
The most popular belief is that he lives in the North Pole, but many lucky children have travelled to Korvatunturi in Lapland to meet the real Father Christmas.
Where does Santa begin his journey?
Santa typically begins his journey at the International Date Line, halfway around the world from London.
That means for us in the UK, Santa will start delivering presents in the afternoon on Christmas Eve.
Then he’ll travel to South Pacific islands, followed by New Zealand, then Australia, Japan, over to Asia and across Africa, then onto Western Europe – and the UK.
After that, he’ll continue to Canada, the USA, Mexico, and Central and South America.
By around noon on Christmas day, he should have travelled all the way around the world.
SO exciting!