0:00:11 > 0:00:12Hi, I'm Martin.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14It's Thursday and this is Newsround.
0:00:14 > 0:00:16Members of the Royal family, including Prince William
0:00:16 > 0:00:19and Prince Harry have been to a memorial to remember those
0:00:19 > 0:00:22who died in the Grenfell Tower fire in June.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25It's been six months since the tragedy.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28The special ceremony today is to make sure the people who died
0:00:28 > 0:00:32are never forgotten.
0:00:32 > 0:00:34Now, it's almost Christmas, but did you know a couple
0:00:34 > 0:00:36of hundred years ago, Christmas wasn't really
0:00:36 > 0:00:38celebrated that much at all!
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Thanks goodness all that changed.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44I love Christmas, and I hear it was actually the Victorians
0:00:44 > 0:00:48who are responsible for some of the things that I enjoy
0:00:48 > 0:00:49during the festive period.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51So I've come to this Victorian town
0:00:51 > 0:00:55to find out what some of those things are.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Now, one thing I love about Christmas is sending cards.
0:00:57 > 0:00:59So let's find out more about that.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02So, tell me, who's going to be sending Christmas cards this year?
0:01:02 > 0:01:04Me!
0:01:04 > 0:01:06What are we doing here?
0:01:06 > 0:01:09We're here in the Victorian print shop, because it was the Victorians
0:01:09 > 0:01:11that invented Christmas cards.
0:01:11 > 0:01:17The first card was invented in 1843 by a man called Sir Henry Cole.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19They invented stamps as well.
0:01:19 > 0:01:21The Victorians sent a lot of Christmas cards
0:01:21 > 0:01:25because during Victorian times, more and more children went
0:01:25 > 0:01:29to school and learnt to read and write, and that meant that
0:01:29 > 0:01:32people wanted to send more mail, especially at Christmas.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35So, we have Victorians to thank for Christmas cards.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39Next stop, a sweet shop for the history of Christmas crackers.
0:01:39 > 0:01:40I love crackers!
0:01:40 > 0:01:43We are here in a sweet shop, and we are here because a Victorian
0:01:43 > 0:01:44invented Christmas crackers.
0:01:44 > 0:01:48He saw sweets in Paris wrapped in paper, and he brought
0:01:48 > 0:01:49this back to Britain.
0:01:49 > 0:01:50When did they make them?
0:01:50 > 0:01:54He made them in the 1840s, so around 170 years ago.
0:01:54 > 0:01:58In the Victorian times, did they bang?
0:01:58 > 0:02:01They did, it wasn't added until a little bit later,
0:02:01 > 0:02:04but apparently the man who invented Christmas crackers was sat next
0:02:04 > 0:02:07to a fire and he heard a log crackle, and he thought let's add
0:02:07 > 0:02:10that snapping sound to a cracker.
0:02:10 > 0:02:12Well, that's cracking, isn't it!
0:02:12 > 0:02:14Bad pun!
0:02:14 > 0:02:18I thought that joke was good enough to go in a cracker?
0:02:18 > 0:02:20Anyway, last stop, one of my favourite things about Christmas.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22The tree.
0:02:22 > 0:02:23Look how Christmassy it looks in here.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26You've got these guys decorating the Christmas tree.
0:02:26 > 0:02:27Looking good!
0:02:27 > 0:02:29You guys carry on.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Why are the Victorian times so important when it comes to having
0:02:32 > 0:02:33a Christmas tree in your house?
0:02:33 > 0:02:36Well, it was the Victorians who really brought the tradition
0:02:36 > 0:02:38of Christmas trees to Britain, and it was actually
0:02:38 > 0:02:41Queen Victoria's German husband Prince Albert who brought this
0:02:41 > 0:02:42tradition over with him.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45He had had a Christmas tree as a boy living in Germany,
0:02:45 > 0:02:48so he brought this over with him and really popularised it.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Everyone saw it and thought yes, I want a tree too.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54Well, this tree is looking amazing!
0:02:54 > 0:02:56There's only one thing left to do then, isn't there?
0:02:56 > 0:03:01ALL:Merry Christmas Newsround!
0:03:01 > 0:03:04Now, scientists in Greenland think they've found
0:03:04 > 0:03:06the oldest shark in the world.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08They think it's over 500 years old.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10It lives in the Arctic ocean.
0:03:10 > 0:03:14We've been thinking about his life.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18Scientists think this shark could be 512 years old,
0:03:18 > 0:03:23which means he would have been born on the year 1505,
0:03:23 > 0:03:26making him 41 years older than world famous poet and playwright
0:03:26 > 0:03:28William Shakespeare.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30He was alive when the Empire State building,
0:03:30 > 0:03:34Eiffel Tower and the leaning Tower of Pisa were built.
0:03:34 > 0:03:37He was there when both TV and radio were invented.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41He's lived through two world wars, six moon landings and
0:03:41 > 0:03:45during his time on earth, he's even outlived entire animal species.
0:03:45 > 0:03:49And he's not FIN-ished there!
0:03:49 > 0:03:51It's safe to say he is a fair old shark.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53You know how wrinkly us humans get
0:03:53 > 0:03:55when we stay in the water for too long?
0:03:55 > 0:03:57Well, considering this fella has been wet
0:03:57 > 0:04:03for more than five centuries, I'd say he's looking good.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07Now a local council advised pupils at schools in Falkirk in Scotland
0:04:07 > 0:04:09not to buy teachers presents.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12It says it's not fair for those who can't afford them.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14Thank you so much for all your comments about this
0:04:14 > 0:04:15at Newsround online.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Class 4KH at Castle Acadamey in Northampton discussed it
0:04:19 > 0:04:23and they say we feel buying a gift for a teacher should be your choice.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27Nell - who's in Carmarthen - says buying a present shows you're
0:04:27 > 0:04:30grateful for all they have done for you throughout the school term.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33But Flo who goes to the Dragon School in Oxford says
0:04:33 > 0:04:36some people might not be able to afford it and that might not make
0:04:36 > 0:04:41them feel good about themselves.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45That's all from me.
0:04:45 > 0:04:51Don't worry, we will be back bright and early tomorrow at 7:40am. Find
0:04:51 > 0:04:56out all the rest of the day's News on our website. There's loads of
0:04:56 > 0:04:59stuff there about the new Star Wars movie coming out. Enjoy the rest of