0:00:01 > 0:00:05Our 12 Again celebs are visited by the Spirit of Christmas Past.
0:00:06 > 0:00:11We'd hear my mum come to the bottom of the stairs and go, "He's been!"
0:00:11 > 0:00:13Nothing else matters in December. It's Christmas.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16We found out exactly what yuletide memories are made of.
0:00:16 > 0:00:20I feel like an adult now. I've bought my mum a Christmas present.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23Sausage wrapped in bacon, why's that so good?
0:00:23 > 0:00:24It just is.
0:00:24 > 0:00:25Feeling festive?
0:00:25 > 0:00:31IT'S CHRISSSSSSTMAAAAAAS!
0:00:31 > 0:00:32I know HE is!
0:00:33 > 0:00:36Have you ever wondered what Christmas is like
0:00:36 > 0:00:38for your favourite celebs when they were your age?
0:00:40 > 0:00:41What presents did they get?
0:00:41 > 0:00:43What Christmas Day telly did they watch?
0:00:43 > 0:00:46And what festive music made them move?
0:00:46 > 0:00:49Because despite the glamorous lifestyles they now lead,
0:00:49 > 0:00:53once they were an excited kid on Christmas Eve, just like you.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55This show revisits Christmas for our celebs
0:00:55 > 0:00:58and asks them to become 12 at Christmas again.
0:01:02 > 0:01:08They're some of the most mega-famous stars in the world of showbiz.
0:01:08 > 0:01:09Yes, I like it here.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12From popstars to presenters...
0:01:12 > 0:01:13I'm Hayley, he's Ricky.
0:01:13 > 0:01:14..actors...
0:01:14 > 0:01:16SHE SCREAMS
0:01:16 > 0:01:18..and DJs, all are hugely successful.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20Thank you, fans.
0:01:20 > 0:01:21Brilliant!
0:01:21 > 0:01:22But when they were kids,
0:01:22 > 0:01:25they had the same kind of Christmas as me and you.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27..your download for the week ahead.
0:01:27 > 0:01:30So let's find out how our celebs felt when they opened that last door
0:01:30 > 0:01:32on their Advent calendar.
0:01:32 > 0:01:33I know Sam gets excited.
0:01:33 > 0:01:34Whoo-hoo!
0:01:37 > 0:01:39Christmas when I was 12... Magic.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43For any 12-year-old, Christmas is like a dream come true.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46Your birthday and Christmas is what I used to live for.
0:01:46 > 0:01:47It's like your birthday,
0:01:47 > 0:01:49but it's everyone's birthday, cos everyone's sharing it.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52It's the most exciting thing in the history of the world.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54There's no other way to say it,
0:01:54 > 0:01:57you absolutely adore it. You count down to it.
0:02:00 > 0:02:02Christmas for me in my household,
0:02:02 > 0:02:05has just always been just amazing.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07I'm so... He'll tell you.
0:02:07 > 0:02:11Still to this day I get so excited about Christmas.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14I love the excitement around it. I love going shopping beforehand.
0:02:14 > 0:02:18I love putting the tree up. It was a real family thing in our house.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20The great thing about Christmas was
0:02:20 > 0:02:23you could have a breakfast of chocolate. How wrong is that?
0:02:23 > 0:02:27But before that special breakfast
0:02:27 > 0:02:29there's the biggest night of the year.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Christmas Eve is my favourite night of the year.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34I love that night. It's so magic.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37I can't sleep on Christmas Eve. I just sort of lie there,
0:02:37 > 0:02:40"Right, Christmas is tomorrow. Just a few hours.
0:02:40 > 0:02:43"Couple of hours." It's the one night of the year
0:02:43 > 0:02:47where I'm guaranteed to not get a single wink.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51It was just magic. Most importantly, Santa Claus, you know?
0:02:51 > 0:02:54You just want that to last forever.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57Don't worry, Ronan, the magic is just beginning.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Now we know how excited our celebs used to be about Christmas,
0:03:00 > 0:03:02but what exactly did they get up to?
0:03:05 > 0:03:08Christmas was quite embarrassing for me because
0:03:08 > 0:03:13my dad always loved to give out Christmas cards to our friends
0:03:13 > 0:03:18and our teachers, but they weren't just regular Christmas cards.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23These were cards that had been made from our family holidays.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25They were, like, this big.
0:03:25 > 0:03:30Strewn across it were all our faces going, "Merry Christmas!"
0:03:30 > 0:03:33Teachers loved it. "Oh, that's brilliant! That's so lovely."
0:03:33 > 0:03:38"Merry Christmas from the Odubas." "Isn't that nice?" Yeah, whatever.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43Me and my brother went Christmas carolling and we raised £60, £70.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46And we thought, we're quids in here. Split it 50-50.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50We got back and my dad's like, "Put it in the collection tomorrow."
0:03:50 > 0:03:53And we were, "Pardon"? "Put it in the Mass collection tomorrow."
0:03:53 > 0:03:55And we're like, "Yeah..."
0:03:55 > 0:03:58So we ended up having to give it in to the Mass collection next day.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01But me and my brother just wanted to cry.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03It least it went to a good cause, Cel.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07Shame, though. You could have spent it on those all-important presents.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13I remember going to my local shopping centre in Bromley.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16I was given some money and bought my mum a Christmas present,
0:04:16 > 0:04:21and I was like, "I feel like an adult now. I've gone and bought my mum a Christmas present."
0:04:21 > 0:04:24I got all my family's presents from the ironmongers.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26I remember once I did the whole lot for £3.50.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29I got my sister a makeup brush for 49p,
0:04:29 > 0:04:30used.
0:04:30 > 0:04:35Um...my other sister I got a shoe polishing kit, used.
0:04:35 > 0:04:39And I got my mum and dad a set of six tumblers.
0:04:39 > 0:04:41All from the ironmongers.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43Top shop! What more do you want?
0:04:43 > 0:04:46Yeah, Christmas sounds like a blast at your house, Dan(!)
0:04:51 > 0:04:55For some it's the anticipation of what lies under the wrapping paper
0:04:55 > 0:04:57which is the best thing.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59The thing that ruined Christmas for me when I was 12 years old
0:04:59 > 0:05:03was my mum, for some reason,
0:05:03 > 0:05:06decided that we weren't going to open our presents
0:05:06 > 0:05:10until after Christmas dinner. We were going for a lovely walk.
0:05:10 > 0:05:13Sometimes it was seven in the evening before I opened my presents.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16My friends were phoning up and telling me stuff they'd got
0:05:16 > 0:05:18and I wouldn't know what I'd got!
0:05:18 > 0:05:23It's still like that. I think she just likes watching me squirm.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30For many, though, Christmas is all about inviting their relatives over.
0:05:30 > 0:05:31Lots of them.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33I've got a pretty big family,
0:05:33 > 0:05:35so Christmases are quite big.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38I remember once my mum couldn't fit everyone round the table.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40We had to get a tennis table
0:05:40 > 0:05:44and put everyone round it and my dad had to sit in the corridor
0:05:44 > 0:05:46because we've got such a big family.
0:05:48 > 0:05:52On Christmas night all my family would be together,
0:05:52 > 0:05:55so I took it upon myself - I was always a bit loud -
0:05:55 > 0:05:57to start doing impressions and singing
0:05:57 > 0:06:02and different things. I put on a whole evening's entertainment and went round with the hat
0:06:02 > 0:06:05and everyone put money in the hat, so I ended up with, like, £40
0:06:05 > 0:06:08on Christmas night just for making everyone laugh.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13And it wouldn't be a proper Christmas
0:06:13 > 0:06:16without a serious amount of food.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19Christmas dinner as well. Ohh! Glorified Sunday dinner.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22The smell of turkey because it used to go on the night before.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25That kind of Christmassy smell filled the whole house
0:06:25 > 0:06:27and it was just fantastic.
0:06:27 > 0:06:28Pigs in blankets.
0:06:28 > 0:06:33Whoever first came up with wrapping, essentially, pig in pig,
0:06:33 > 0:06:34is brilliant!
0:06:34 > 0:06:38Sausage wrapped in bacon, why is that so good? It just is.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40Why can't food be like that all the time?
0:06:40 > 0:06:42- You wouldn't appreciate it.- I would.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45- You wouldn't appreciate it! - I really would.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51Our Christmas dinner might be turkey with all the trimmings,
0:06:51 > 0:06:55but away from home things are often a bit different.
0:06:55 > 0:06:56SPEAKS JAPANESE
0:06:56 > 0:06:59In Japan, they prefer to celebrate the big day
0:06:59 > 0:07:02with fast food-style fried chicken.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08Another unusual festive tradition can be found in Iceland.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12Instead of Santa Claus, Christmas there coincides with the arrival
0:07:12 > 0:07:16of the Yule Lads. They're trolls with names like Pot-Scraper,
0:07:16 > 0:07:19Door-Slammer and Window-Peeper.
0:07:19 > 0:07:20Sounds a bit odd, doesn't it?
0:07:20 > 0:07:23But it's not a joke, honest.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25THEY SPEAK ICELANDIC
0:07:27 > 0:07:30What's that? 12 Again's the best programme of all time? Cheers, lads!
0:07:33 > 0:07:38The Yule Lads enjoy causing mischief for the locals during the countdown to Christmas,
0:07:38 > 0:07:39but they also leave presents for the kids,
0:07:39 > 0:07:42so they're not all bad.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44INTERVIEW IN ICELANDIC
0:07:44 > 0:07:47He loves it!
0:07:47 > 0:07:49Away from the snow of Iceland,
0:07:49 > 0:07:52some parts of the world enjoy hot sunshine at Christmas.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56This may sound great, but it's not without its drawbacks,
0:07:56 > 0:08:00as one of our celebs discovered when he was a kid.
0:08:00 > 0:08:02Christmas, of course, in Australia,
0:08:02 > 0:08:06is really, really hot, and I remember getting some chocolates
0:08:06 > 0:08:12from Santa and they'd all melted
0:08:12 > 0:08:14under the Christmas tree.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16They were completely and absolutely melted.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19Just all runny and gooey. It was grotesque!
0:08:19 > 0:08:23Wow! So our celebs' festive memories are pretty unforgettable.
0:08:23 > 0:08:28But what music had them rocking around the Christmas tree?
0:08:28 > 0:08:31For some reason the charts at Christmas were always so important.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33I used to stay up listening to the radio
0:08:33 > 0:08:35wanting to know what was Christmas number one.
0:08:35 > 0:08:39I think the Christmas number one needed some jingle bells,
0:08:39 > 0:08:44a chorus from a school choir and definitely some fake snow.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47Just put sleigh bells in it, you've got a Christmas song.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49Apply the winning festive formula,
0:08:49 > 0:08:52you're left with a selection box of songs
0:08:52 > 0:08:55that provide the perfect Christmas soundtrack.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57Last Christmas, by Wham,
0:08:57 > 0:09:00must have been around the time I was 12.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02I loved that song.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06# Last Christmas I gave you my heart
0:09:06 > 0:09:11# But the very next day you gave it away #
0:09:11 > 0:09:13I think it was, for me, the school disco
0:09:13 > 0:09:17and the idea that one Christmas somebody could love me.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19# Give it to someone special #
0:09:19 > 0:09:22My favourite Christmas song of all time
0:09:22 > 0:09:25would definitely have to be The Pogues, Fairytale of New York.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28# The boys of the NYPD choir
0:09:28 > 0:09:30# Still singing Galway Bay... #
0:09:30 > 0:09:31It's just such a good song.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34# And the bells are ringing out for Christmas Day. #
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Music-wise, the ultimate Christmas tune...
0:09:37 > 0:09:38# Christmas time
0:09:39 > 0:09:42# Mistletoe and wine... #
0:09:42 > 0:09:44Cliff! He's on the money.
0:09:44 > 0:09:46There's nothing wrong with Mistletoe and Wine.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48# ..Singing Christian rhyme... #
0:09:48 > 0:09:50"Logs on the fire, gifts on the tree...
0:09:50 > 0:09:53"Time to rejoice in the good that we see."
0:09:53 > 0:09:54He's nailed it there.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56The big man's nailed it.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58# ..The good that we see #
0:09:58 > 0:10:00The only song I remember as a 12-year-old
0:10:00 > 0:10:02was White Christmas with Bing Crosby.
0:10:02 > 0:10:09# I'm dreaming of a white Christmas... #
0:10:09 > 0:10:13White Christmas was first heard by the public on Christmas Day in 1941,
0:10:13 > 0:10:17when Bing Crosby performed the song on the radio.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21It's been a massive Yuletide hit ever since,
0:10:21 > 0:10:24selling a whopping 50 million copies.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28That makes it the biggest selling single of all time.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30I used to do it in school for Christmas carols
0:10:30 > 0:10:34and I loved that. I remember singing it all the time, thinking,
0:10:34 > 0:10:37"Maybe we'll have a white Christmas this year." We never did.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40# I'm dreaming of a white... #
0:10:40 > 0:10:42I don't know how he got away with going...
0:10:42 > 0:10:43MIMICS BING'S CROONING
0:10:48 > 0:10:49Can't stand him!
0:10:49 > 0:10:52OH, come on, Chris, where's your festive spirit?
0:10:52 > 0:10:55# ..Be white. #
0:10:55 > 0:10:57Now, you couldn't talk Yuletide songs
0:10:57 > 0:11:01without paying tribute to biggest Christmas cracker of them all.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05The only song that comes into my head is Slade.
0:11:05 > 0:11:10# Are you hanging up a stocking on your wall...? #
0:11:10 > 0:11:15It is the best song. It encapsulates the whole mood of Christmas.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18# ..Santa has a ball... #
0:11:18 > 0:11:21Merry Christmas Everybody was released in 1973
0:11:21 > 0:11:23by glam rock legends, Slade.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25It hit the top spot in December
0:11:25 > 0:11:28and stayed in the charts well into the new year.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32It came straight in at number one,
0:11:32 > 0:11:34which was quite rare in those days in the charts.
0:11:34 > 0:11:38# So here it is Merry Christmas... #
0:11:38 > 0:11:42Every time you hear it, even now, it makes you feel happy.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44You know that Christmas is there.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47As soon as that song is played it's time to celebrate Christmas.
0:11:47 > 0:11:52# It's only just begun... #
0:11:52 > 0:11:54It might be a Yuletide classic now,
0:11:54 > 0:11:57but Slade actually recorded the song in the middle of summer,
0:11:57 > 0:12:01in New York, in the baking heat. How festive!
0:12:01 > 0:12:04# Does your granny always tell you... #
0:12:04 > 0:12:06Since first charting nearly 40 years ago,
0:12:06 > 0:12:10the song is now as much a part of Christmas as the Queen's Speech,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12and there's one line that everybody knows.
0:12:12 > 0:12:17The most famous part of it, of course, is when Noddy Holder goes,
0:12:17 > 0:12:24"IT'S CHRIIIIISSSSSSTMAAAAAS!"
0:12:24 > 0:12:28IT'S CHRIIIIISSSSSSTMAAAAAS!
0:12:28 > 0:12:30As a kid, that's all you want to hear.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33That's what you want to scream to the rooftops.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35- That's what you shout when you leave school.- Absolutely.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38- IT'S CHRISTMAS!- Yes! Come on!
0:12:38 > 0:12:44Spot-on, lads. If that's not got you feeling festive, just wait.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49Our celebs will be revealing what TV made them put down their presents
0:12:49 > 0:12:52and gather round the box at Christmas time.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54Christmas TV is great. I still love Christmas TV now.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57Even as a young kid I remember laughing my head off.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00- The moral of the story? - # I'm walking in the air... #
0:13:00 > 0:13:02Don't make snowmen.
0:13:02 > 0:13:04THEY LAUGH
0:13:04 > 0:13:06But first we find out who was naughty or nice
0:13:06 > 0:13:09by peeking underneath our celebs' Christmas trees
0:13:09 > 0:13:12to check on the best and worst presents they ever received.
0:13:15 > 0:13:16Being 12 at Christmas,
0:13:16 > 0:13:21the thing that's on your mind more than anything at that point,
0:13:21 > 0:13:22is the presents.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28You wind yourself up and you count down - it's two sleeps,
0:13:28 > 0:13:31it's one sleep, and then Christmas morning,
0:13:31 > 0:13:33because you've got yourself so carried away,
0:13:33 > 0:13:36you can't help but wake up at four in the morning.
0:13:36 > 0:13:41You'd hear my mum come to the bottom of the stairs and go, "He's been!"
0:13:41 > 0:13:42Meaning Santa.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45And we'd run downstairs and there'd be loads of presents
0:13:45 > 0:13:48and it was... Ohhh... We still do that.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53And what exactly did our celebs get if they were lucky enough
0:13:53 > 0:13:56to find that Father Christmas had stopped by?
0:13:56 > 0:13:57The best toy,
0:13:57 > 0:14:00um, it was probably my electric scooter.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03Inline skates had just come out.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06I remember that Christmas came and I got them and I was so happy.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09It was just like magical, Christmas morning.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11The best Christmas present I ever got was a puppy.
0:14:11 > 0:14:14We never thought we'd get one, and there in the middle of the lounge
0:14:14 > 0:14:16was this tiny golden retriever puppy.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18It looked like Simba in The Lion King
0:14:18 > 0:14:20as my dad held him up for us to see.
0:14:22 > 0:14:23One year I got ALL the Batman toys.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32My mum and dad said, "Why don't you take them behind the sofa
0:14:32 > 0:14:35"and pretend it's the Bat Cave?" And I went, "Yeah, all right."
0:14:35 > 0:14:37So I picked 'em all up in my little hands,
0:14:37 > 0:14:40went round the back of the sofa, and what do you know?
0:14:40 > 0:14:42The actual Bat Cave right there.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45- I screamed the house down.- Did you? - Oh, it was amazing.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47It was only last year. HE LAUGHS
0:14:50 > 0:14:53And of course there's always one particular present
0:14:53 > 0:14:55that goes down very well at Christmas.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Nightmare to wrap, though.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59The best present I got was my bike.
0:14:59 > 0:15:01It was a purple Raleigh bike,
0:15:01 > 0:15:04which my dad helped teach me to ride. The weird thing of
0:15:04 > 0:15:06you could feel they're holding the seat underneath
0:15:06 > 0:15:09and then they let you go and you think they're still holding on
0:15:09 > 0:15:10and you're like, "Aaagh!"
0:15:10 > 0:15:13Turn the handlebars one way and... Hey, hey!
0:15:13 > 0:15:15I hope he kept the receipt.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18You cannot beat a brand new bike on Christmas Day,
0:15:18 > 0:15:20but they haven't half changed over the years.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24Back in the 1950s they were quite serious-looking things.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28One Christmas, when I got my first two-wheeler bike,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30I remember getting on the bike and falling off
0:15:30 > 0:15:32and really hurting my knee badly
0:15:32 > 0:15:33and howling my head off.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36But by the time we hit the 1970s,
0:15:36 > 0:15:40kids were freewheeling around town on the legendary Chopper.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44VALERIE SINGLETON: They really are very modern bikes indeed.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47I think they're just about the most modern-designed bikes
0:15:47 > 0:15:48I've seen for ages.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56And when we moved into the 1980s it was all about the BMX.
0:15:56 > 0:16:01When I was 12 I got my first BMX, which was a massive deal for me.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03And the first day I went out, Christmas Day, I went down the road
0:16:03 > 0:16:07and I pulled the front brakes and I went straight over the handlebars,
0:16:07 > 0:16:09landed on my head. I'll never forget it.
0:16:09 > 0:16:13Since Ronan went head over heels for his BMX, the biggest development
0:16:13 > 0:16:16in the world of two wheels has been the off-road mountain bike.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19I'm just not entirely convinced by the outfits.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21I think of a mountain bike,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24like the proper ones that change gears and whatnot,
0:16:24 > 0:16:26and I was like, I love this!
0:16:26 > 0:16:29Another present that's always a joy to unwrap
0:16:29 > 0:16:32is a brand new computer console.
0:16:32 > 0:16:34But if you think bikes have gone through a lot of changes,
0:16:34 > 0:16:38wait until you see what some of these monsters used to look like.
0:16:41 > 0:16:46One Christmas I got a really good present. It was a games console.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50Now you'd look at it and go, how did that even work?
0:16:50 > 0:16:51And you got these games on cassette
0:16:51 > 0:16:54and it took about half an hour to load
0:16:54 > 0:16:57- and it made this noise. - MIMICS MODEM
0:16:57 > 0:16:59MODEM SCREECHES
0:17:01 > 0:17:03- And when it stopped you knew it had loaded.- Brilliant.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06OK, 1980s computers might not have looked much
0:17:06 > 0:17:10but they changed family playtime forever.
0:17:10 > 0:17:15Video games were now part of our home entertainment
0:17:15 > 0:17:19and in the early 1990s things got even slicker.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25Best present I ever got when I was 12 years old
0:17:25 > 0:17:27would probably be my Super Nintendo.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30I remember opening that box, seeing the logo and thinking,
0:17:30 > 0:17:31this is the best thing ever!
0:17:31 > 0:17:35The arcade-quality graphics of home consoles just got better and better.
0:17:35 > 0:17:36in the mid-'90s.
0:17:36 > 0:17:421994 saw the PlayStation emerge, a console that was such a big hit
0:17:42 > 0:17:45over a 100 million of them were sold around the world.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49The PlayStation was the best thing ever.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52I kissed goodbye to any social interaction for at least a month
0:17:52 > 0:17:55because I was constantly playing games.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58While consoles improved with every new release,
0:17:58 > 0:18:01the other big development was the rise of handheld gaming.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06And there was one must-have on everyone's Christmas list in 1990.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08That was a good present, though, Game Boy.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12I wanted a Game Boy. How come I never got one? I never got one.
0:18:12 > 0:18:15- Even now I... I never owned a Game Boy.- Game Boy in colour.
0:18:15 > 0:18:19- It was purple, that.- Yeah. I had one of them. Broke it.
0:18:19 > 0:18:20HE LAUGHS
0:18:20 > 0:18:22Threw it at the wall.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Everybody step away from Brazen.
0:18:25 > 0:18:30OK, new bikes and computer consoles are always winners at Christmas,
0:18:30 > 0:18:33but let's be honest, that's only half the story.
0:18:33 > 0:18:38What about things that might've have been better off staying in the shops?
0:18:40 > 0:18:43But remember, kids, it's the thought that counts.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47One year I got a tea towel
0:18:47 > 0:18:49wrapped around a first aid kit.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51What?!
0:18:51 > 0:18:54Yep. If you're watching, Gran, I love you.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58I remember one year getting a book
0:18:58 > 0:18:59and it was a bit big.
0:18:59 > 0:19:03I started this thank-you letter with "Dear Auntie Betty,
0:19:03 > 0:19:06"thank you for my book you gave me for Christmas.
0:19:06 > 0:19:08"It's a bit too big so I probably won't be reading it."
0:19:08 > 0:19:13The worst ever Christmas present I got was a packet of Scamps crisps
0:19:13 > 0:19:18which, bless, she shall remain anonymous, but a great aunt of mine.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21One year I got a bottle of ketchup.
0:19:21 > 0:19:22Um, that was it.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25Not even a big one, a medium-sized bottle of ketchup.
0:19:25 > 0:19:27The whole family was bought a tin of tuna.
0:19:27 > 0:19:29True.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32It wasn't wrapped and we were bought it because the person
0:19:32 > 0:19:35who bought it for us thought it would be nice for us all to sit down
0:19:35 > 0:19:37and have a meal together.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40Someone get Barney a turkey.
0:19:40 > 0:19:45Our celebs remember what made Christmas magical for them.
0:19:45 > 0:19:49The best thing about Christmas when you're a kid is sitting in bed
0:19:49 > 0:19:52with the covers like this, really excited.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55You can't really explain that feeling when you open the door
0:19:55 > 0:19:56and he has been.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59The best thing about Christmas is being with your family.
0:19:59 > 0:20:03But first we found out what festive TV they were watching
0:20:03 > 0:20:04back when they were kids.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09Christmas TV is great. I still love Christmas TV now.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11Something about it feels really special.
0:20:11 > 0:20:13Gathering round the TV at Christmas is of course
0:20:13 > 0:20:15a really significant part of what you do
0:20:15 > 0:20:17with your family at Christmas.
0:20:17 > 0:20:18Christmas Day in our house
0:20:18 > 0:20:21usually followed the same routine.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24We'd get up quite late,
0:20:24 > 0:20:27we'd have Christmas dinner and, when we were all full,
0:20:27 > 0:20:30and feeling like the stuffed turkey itself,
0:20:30 > 0:20:34we'd plonk ourselves on the sofa to watch the Christmas telly.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36And back in the day,
0:20:36 > 0:20:40most of us would have been watching two comedy legends.
0:20:40 > 0:20:44Christmas TV - Morecambe and Wise.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48Ladies and gentlemen, Grieg's Piano Concerto, soloist Eric Morecambe,
0:20:48 > 0:20:49conductor, Mr Andrew Preview.
0:20:49 > 0:20:50LAUGHTER
0:20:50 > 0:20:54It's like turkey and stuffing.
0:20:54 > 0:20:55Right!
0:20:55 > 0:20:57TOTALLY OFF-KEY
0:20:57 > 0:21:00To do a huge, fantastic, glitzy, glossy Christmas special
0:21:00 > 0:21:02with all the celebs!
0:21:02 > 0:21:05You're playing all the wrong notes.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08In the 1970s, Christmas wouldn't have been Christmas
0:21:08 > 0:21:12without Britain being entertained by Morecambe and Wise.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15I'm playing all the RIGHT notes...
0:21:15 > 0:21:16LAUGHTER
0:21:16 > 0:21:19..but not necessarily in the right order.
0:21:19 > 0:21:20LAUGHTER
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Angela Rippon did a Morecambe and Wise special, of course.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27There may be trouble ahead,
0:21:27 > 0:21:30but while there's moonlight and music...
0:21:30 > 0:21:33When the newsreader got out from behind the desk
0:21:33 > 0:21:34and did her high kicking,
0:21:34 > 0:21:36she kind of like broke the mould.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42I was the BBC's newsreader at that time.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44Very serious. That's what you did.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46News is a serious business.
0:21:46 > 0:21:48And demonstrated that I could dance
0:21:48 > 0:21:51and it was a bit of a sensation.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Each year, Eric and Ernie's Christmas Special
0:21:55 > 0:21:57was a massive national event.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01In 1976, more than 28 million viewers tuned in.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04That's around half our entire population.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08And they saw a sketch which became a comedy classic.
0:22:08 > 0:22:09They were in the kitchen,
0:22:09 > 0:22:12and all to do with toast popping out of the toaster,
0:22:12 > 0:22:16and them catching it and buttering it and things like that.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18It was one of the cleverest routines ever.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20My dad never watched that much telly,
0:22:20 > 0:22:22but he loved Morecambe and Wise.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24He liked proper barrel laughter.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27And every year the Christmas Special would be on.
0:22:30 > 0:22:31LAUGHTER
0:22:33 > 0:22:34I mean, they were brilliant.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38Just so... Even as a young kid I remember laughing my head off.
0:22:39 > 0:22:41Morecambe and Wise might be the kings
0:22:41 > 0:22:43of spreading that festive feeling,
0:22:43 > 0:22:47but there's one square in London that not even they can cheer up.
0:22:47 > 0:22:51In my house, EastEnders was always the show that used to come on.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54It would stop. Everyone would stop what they were doing
0:22:54 > 0:22:58and have a watch at what misery was going on in Albert Square.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00Are you deaf?! I said no!
0:23:00 > 0:23:03I don't care what you said. You've got no right to do this!
0:23:03 > 0:23:07Since 1985, EastEnders has done a great job in reminding the nation
0:23:07 > 0:23:09that not everyone's happy at Christmas time.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11I've had enough of your mouth. Get out of my pub!
0:23:11 > 0:23:15EastEnders Christmas episodes are always really, really miserable.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17Give it a rest, will you, Kath?
0:23:17 > 0:23:18I've had about enough...
0:23:18 > 0:23:20'I guess they have to be'
0:23:20 > 0:23:24so you can realise how good your life is and how fortunate you are.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27Tiffany's Grant's wife, right? Why was he kissing my mum?
0:23:28 > 0:23:33Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without a big EastEnders storyline.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36- I don't believe this!- That's my grandchild you're carrying!- Mum!
0:23:36 > 0:23:37- He's right.- Don't you start!
0:23:37 > 0:23:40Do you mind? That's my wife you're talking to!
0:23:40 > 0:23:41SHUT UP!
0:23:41 > 0:23:42All of ya!
0:23:42 > 0:23:44And then in come the drums.
0:23:44 > 0:23:45Phil! Get Ricky!
0:23:45 > 0:23:46DRUMS
0:23:46 > 0:23:48There's your Christmas episode.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Fortunately, for those who wanted something a little bit cosier
0:23:54 > 0:23:56than the happenings in Albert Square,
0:23:56 > 0:23:59there was always this kid's Christmas classic.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01Probably my favourite Christmas film
0:24:01 > 0:24:04that gets me in the mood is The Snowman.
0:24:06 > 0:24:10The Snowman was first seen on British television in 1982.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12It tells the story of a boy called James,
0:24:12 > 0:24:16who builds a snowman which magically comes to life.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19It has everything you want in a Christmas film, I think.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22I don't think we got that much snow,
0:24:22 > 0:24:24so having that much snow to make a snowman
0:24:24 > 0:24:26and then it coming to life was a nice idea.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33And then when he flies, that's the best bit of the film. He's off.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37# We're walking in the air... #
0:24:37 > 0:24:41I'd watch The Snowman on TV
0:24:41 > 0:24:43and sing - # We're walking in the air... #
0:24:47 > 0:24:49I was an Aled Jones fan.
0:24:49 > 0:24:53Songs of Praise presenter Aled Jones did become famous for singing...
0:24:53 > 0:24:56# Walking in the air... # ..when he was much younger.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59# We're walking in the air... #
0:24:59 > 0:25:02But Aled's version didn't appear in the film.
0:25:02 > 0:25:07The song in the film was performed by a choirboy called Peter Auty.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11# Far across the world... #
0:25:11 > 0:25:14# I'm walking in the air
0:25:14 > 0:25:18# A do-da do-da do... do de... #
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Who needs words when you've got a brilliant tune
0:25:22 > 0:25:24well sung by moi?
0:25:24 > 0:25:26Yeah, you're all right, thanks, Ore.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28I think we'll stick to Peter's version.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32# Children gaze open-mouthed... #
0:25:32 > 0:25:35Not only was The Snowman memorable for its music,
0:25:35 > 0:25:37it also had a bit of a weepy ending,
0:25:37 > 0:25:39which everyone remembers.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42It used to make me cry.
0:25:42 > 0:25:46- The Snowman did, because at the end he melted.- Ahh!
0:25:46 > 0:25:47And I thought it was horrible.
0:25:47 > 0:25:51James goes to bed and wakes up the next morning, snowman melted.
0:25:53 > 0:25:57- It's sad, but the moral of the story? - # We're walking in the air... #
0:25:57 > 0:26:00Don't make snowmen.
0:26:00 > 0:26:01LAUGHTER
0:26:08 > 0:26:10So those were our celebs' best of TV hits,
0:26:10 > 0:26:14but what are their best-loved Christmas memories
0:26:14 > 0:26:16from when they were 12?
0:26:16 > 0:26:20The best thing about Christmas when you're a kid is sitting in bed
0:26:20 > 0:26:23with the covers like this, really excited,
0:26:23 > 0:26:27and I'd just peer round the door if he'd been to bring me any presents.
0:26:27 > 0:26:30You can't really explain that feeling when you open the door
0:26:30 > 0:26:33and he has been. All the presents are there.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36The best thing about Christmas is being with your family.
0:26:36 > 0:26:38As a kid I loved having people round.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41Our house was always busy and filled with people.
0:26:41 > 0:26:43You get to see all your cousins and everyone your age
0:26:43 > 0:26:46and play with all their games and it seemed to last for days.
0:26:46 > 0:26:50That was the best thing about Christmas - constant playtime.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53Christmas is the same. You've always got your family around.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55It's that time where everyone comes together.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58It's perfect, because you've got your family and friends there
0:26:58 > 0:27:01and you sort of surround yourself
0:27:01 > 0:27:04in this world of Santa and flying reindeer.
0:27:04 > 0:27:06It's just a really warm feeling.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09And when you're young it's a really special time of year.
0:27:09 > 0:27:14It's just magical. Nothing else matters in December. It's Christmas.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17The best thing about Christmas as a kid, and today, for me,
0:27:17 > 0:27:20is the anticipation of it all, the build-up.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23For me, Christmas is all about family, isn't it?
0:27:23 > 0:27:25Getting all the family together,
0:27:25 > 0:27:29playing games, eating far too much food and watching a lot of telly.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32It's the magic of it, it's the excitement,
0:27:32 > 0:27:33it's the fact that it's al new.
0:27:33 > 0:27:37You're learning the traditions, getting the music in your head.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40But I'm 32 now and I still love Christmas.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44So, what Christmas lessons have we learnt?
0:27:46 > 0:27:48Bikes in the 1970s were seriously cool.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50They really are very modern bikes indeed.
0:27:50 > 0:27:53I think they're just about the most modern-design bikes
0:27:53 > 0:27:55that I've seen for ages.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57Christmas in Walford is far from merry.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01- That's my wife you're talking to! - SHUT UP! All of ya!
0:28:01 > 0:28:04And all you need in Iceland to spread cheer
0:28:04 > 0:28:06is a man with a fake beard.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08Isn't that right, pal?
0:28:08 > 0:28:09- Yes.- Brilliant.
0:28:09 > 0:28:10Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd