After the Covid Christmases of the last couple of years, a new threat could mean your Christmas is a little different this year.
The cost of living crisis is set to see millions of Brits cutting back on their usual festivities to save costs. A recent YouGov poll found that over half (60%) of UK adults are approaching Christmas differently this year.
And while tightening the purse strings might be the order of the day, 87% of Brits claim the festive period brings them joy, with more than a third (36%) confirming that this Christmas is more important than ever.
Keep reading for your look at Christmas 2022 in numbers. From turkeys eaten to crackers pulled and presents wrapped, here’s how your festive season will stack up.
Naughty or nice?
Your Christmas presents in numbers:
£294.58
Whether or not your child or grandchild is on Santa’s naughty list, their letter to the North Pole will include presents totalling an average of nearly £300.
£5 billion
Worryingly, this is the amount that will be spent on unwanted gifts this year.
£33
Panicked trips to the garage or local newsagents all add up. Brits will spend more than £30 on last-minute gifts this Christmas.
227,000 miles
This is the length of the wrapping paper that will be sold this Christmas. For context, that’s nine times around the equator or 95% of the way to the moon!
6 million
With 227,000 miles of wrapping paper to stick down,6 million is the number of rolls of Sellotape that will be needed.
From poultry to pudding
Three festive food facts:
42%
The popularity of turkey as the Christmas dinner staple is waning, but nearly half of UK households will still be sitting down to a roast turkey this year.
9 million
Despite several bird flu outbreaks and subsequent culls, DEFRA recently told ITV that Christmas turkey supplies won’t be affected.
With the British Poultry Council confirming last year that 9 million of the birds would grace dinner tables over the festive period, this will come as welcome news to many.
6,000
Worryingly, this is the number of calories consumed by the average Brit on Christmas Day, according to a 2016 survey by Wren Kitchens.
A main course of turkey with all the trimmings could account for just shy of 1,000 calories. A three-course meal with alcohol and a day of picking at tins of chocolates soon add up though. The recommended daily intake is 2,000 calories for women, and 2,500 for men.
The Christmas broadcast
Following the death of the Queen earlier this year, King Charles III is expected to deliver his first Christmas speech this year. Here’s what we know:
90 years
The first Christmas broadcast by the UK’s reigning monarch was given by George V in 1932, some 90 years ago.
9 million
This is the TV audience for the Queen’s speech in 2021. The number pales in comparison to the 20 million who watched her address in April 2020. That message was one of national strength and unity as the coronavirus pandemic took hold and the nation was in lockdown.
10 minutes
Usually pre-recorded in mid-December and shown on Christmas Day at 3 pm, the speech had historically lasted for around 10 minutes. King Charles will no doubt use his first Christmas Day speech to pay tribute to his late mother.
Christmas traditions
From trees and crackers to a faster-than-light sleigh, Christmas traditions in numbers:
822
This is the number of homes Santa visits every second to ensure that every child’s Christmas presents are tucked safely beneath the tree when they wake on Christmas morning.
221
This is the height in feet (67 metres) of the world’s tallest Christmas tree, erected in the Northgate shopping centre in Seattle, Washington in 1950. It shone with more than 3,600 lights.
£6,975,880
The most expensively decorated Christmas tree ever boasted decorations worth almost £7 million. The display could be seen at the Emirates Palace (UAE) in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, from 16 to 29 December 2010.
Abu Dhabi’s effort beat the former holder of the record from Osaka in Japan.
177
The first Christmas cracker was introduced in 1845 (that’s a whopping 177 years ago!) by a London sweet maker called Tom Smith.
The largest Christmas cracker measured an impressive 207 feet in length. That’s just over 63 metres. Made by the parents of schoolchildren in Chesham, Buckinghamshire, the school’s pupils and members of Saracens Rugby Club pulled the cracker.
It contained balloons, toys, a hat and a joke.
