0:00:02 > 0:00:03Meet the Robshaws.
0:00:03 > 0:00:06They're about to embark on a whistle-stop tour of Christmas past.
0:00:07 > 0:00:14For Brandon, Rochelle, Miranda, Ros and Fred...
0:00:14 > 0:00:16It's Christma-a-as!
0:00:16 > 0:00:17It's Christmas!
0:00:17 > 0:00:19It's Christmas Day!
0:00:19 > 0:00:21..it really will be Christmas every day.
0:00:21 > 0:00:23Bang!
0:00:23 > 0:00:27They're travelling back in time to celebrate six decades of festive fun.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31- ALL:- Oh!
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Ho-ho-ho!
0:00:35 > 0:00:37Oh, my Lord, look at that!
0:00:37 > 0:00:41- From dinner...- It's ox heart. - ..to decorations...
0:00:41 > 0:00:43I think people might be quite impressed by that.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46It's exploded in a tinsel time-bomb.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48..and party games...
0:00:48 > 0:00:50- Fat goose!- ..to presents...
0:00:50 > 0:00:52He's got a Johnny 7!
0:00:52 > 0:00:54- ALL:- Whoa!
0:00:54 > 0:00:56Fantastic.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58Do you sometimes feel it's like the more you give them,
0:00:58 > 0:00:59the more they want?
0:00:59 > 0:01:02As they fast-forward through the changing foods
0:01:02 > 0:01:03and fads of each era...
0:01:03 > 0:01:05Oh, it's La-la!
0:01:05 > 0:01:08..will the Robshaws discover the ingredients
0:01:08 > 0:01:11of a perfect family Christmas?
0:01:11 > 0:01:12Tah-dah!
0:01:12 > 0:01:19# Let the bells ring out for Christmas. #
0:01:23 > 0:01:26The Robshaw family Christmas is usually spent
0:01:26 > 0:01:28at their home in East London.
0:01:30 > 0:01:36# It's the most wonderful time of the year... #
0:01:36 > 0:01:40For lecturer Brandon, it's his season to be jolly.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42I really love Christmas. There's the giving presents,
0:01:42 > 0:01:44there's all the traditions associated with it,
0:01:44 > 0:01:46like the tree and the carols.
0:01:46 > 0:01:48It's exactly what you need to cheer you up
0:01:48 > 0:01:50in the middle of that dark, wintry time.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53I think my favourite bit of the day is the morning
0:01:53 > 0:01:55when you've just woken up and then you're a bit groggy and you think,
0:01:55 > 0:01:59"Why am I up so early?" And then you remember and you go, "It's Christmas!"
0:01:59 > 0:02:02I think we all like Christmas because we just get presents.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05So, what's not to like?
0:02:05 > 0:02:07But teacher Rochelle doesn't find it as easy
0:02:07 > 0:02:09to get into the Christmas spirit.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12Christmas makes me feel pretty stressed out.
0:02:12 > 0:02:18I want to like it, but the best bit of Christmas is when it's all over!
0:02:18 > 0:02:21# You better watch out You better not cry...#
0:02:21 > 0:02:23Love it or loathe it, the way we celebrate Christmas
0:02:23 > 0:02:25has changed enormously.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27But how did our modern Christmas emerge?
0:02:27 > 0:02:30To find out, I'm sending the Robshaws back in time to
0:02:30 > 0:02:33celebrate 60 years of festive fun in six different period houses.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35And what better place to start than the 1940s,
0:02:35 > 0:02:38when people were experiencing some of the most austere
0:02:38 > 0:02:40Christmases they would ever know?
0:02:40 > 0:02:43# He sees you when you're sleepin'... #
0:02:43 > 0:02:46I've sent the Robshaws to spend their first Noel
0:02:46 > 0:02:47in a genuine 1940s home.
0:02:49 > 0:02:50Oh, wow.
0:02:50 > 0:02:53All their food, decorations and gifts will be inspired by recipe books,
0:02:53 > 0:02:56magazines and diaries of the time.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58It's very green, isn't it?
0:02:58 > 0:02:59Wow!
0:03:03 > 0:03:05Isn't it lovely?
0:03:05 > 0:03:09Is this a radio? You'd listen to all the sort of war music.
0:03:09 > 0:03:10They'd all huddle round that
0:03:10 > 0:03:12and listen to all the war reports on the BBC.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16AIR RAID SIREN
0:03:17 > 0:03:21By December 1940, Britain had been at war for over a year
0:03:21 > 0:03:24and the run-up to Christmas was conducted under fire
0:03:24 > 0:03:27both abroad and at home.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30- HISTORICAL NARRATOR:- This is not the most cheerful Christmas
0:03:30 > 0:03:32that ever came to England,
0:03:32 > 0:03:36but everyone is determined to make it as cheerful as possible.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47Along with social historian Polly Russell,
0:03:47 > 0:03:51I'm bringing the Robshaws some basic supplies for their wartime Christmas.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53Hi!
0:03:53 > 0:03:54Rochelle, a big challenge for you
0:03:54 > 0:03:56is going to be around food at Christmas,
0:03:56 > 0:03:59because, of course, you're on full rations by now
0:03:59 > 0:04:00at this point in the war.
0:04:00 > 0:04:03So you have been saving over a period of months,
0:04:03 > 0:04:05trying to make sure that you can hold back
0:04:05 > 0:04:07a little bit of butter, a little bit of sugar,
0:04:07 > 0:04:11so that you can actually provide a decent meal on Christmas Day.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15It's not full, Fred, it's really not full!
0:04:15 > 0:04:18- That's your bacon ration.- Oh. - That's your mince ration.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21There's your fat, lard and butter.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23- Bit of sugar.- That's quite a lot.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25Not to make too many mince pies and cakes, it's not.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27- Luckily, still off ration, sherry. - Oh!
0:04:27 > 0:04:29So you have got a bottle of sherry.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31- There's something. - I'll probably drink that!
0:04:31 > 0:04:32LAUGHTER
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Do you think you can cope with that?
0:04:34 > 0:04:36I'll give it a go and hope that nothing gets burnt.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38I don't know. Yeah.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40'But it wasn't just food in short supply.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42'With decorations hard to come by,
0:04:42 > 0:04:44'families were forced to make their own.'
0:04:44 > 0:04:48It's pine cones! So you're going to make some glue using the flour,
0:04:48 > 0:04:51and sticking Epsom salts to the pine cones
0:04:51 > 0:04:53- to make them look like snowy pine cones!- Frosty snow!
0:04:53 > 0:04:56But, yes, that's going to decorate your lovely home.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59For me, this Christmas is going to be serious privation.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03- But I'm sure we'll have fun, won't we?- Enjoy your 1940s Christmas.
0:05:03 > 0:05:04Thank you very much.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06- See you soon.- ALL:- Bye!
0:05:08 > 0:05:12The Robshaws' 1940s yuletide is underway.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15It's Christmas Eve!
0:05:16 > 0:05:19And what better way to start than with their Christmas tree?
0:05:19 > 0:05:22A tradition popularised by the Victorians.
0:05:23 > 0:05:25"Here is an idea for the modern Christmas tree."
0:05:25 > 0:05:28He's made out of all these triangular wooden shapes.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30And then I guess you paint it green
0:05:30 > 0:05:32and you've got a pretend Christmas tree.
0:05:34 > 0:05:35With few real trees available,
0:05:35 > 0:05:38enterprising families opted to do their best
0:05:38 > 0:05:40with scrap wood.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42Normally it would be just as much work, because we buy a tree,
0:05:42 > 0:05:46we load it on the car, we bring it back, we put it in a tub.
0:05:46 > 0:05:47- This is more fun, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54All right. Well, that's all right as a tree, isn't it?
0:05:55 > 0:05:57And it's not just Fred and Brandon.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59Oh! That looks beautiful.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03The whole family is embracing the make-do-and-mend philosophy.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08This is the Christmas Day pudding.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13The first Christmas pudding recipe was published in 1830,
0:06:13 > 0:06:16but Rochelle's is a wartime version from Good Housekeeping magazine.
0:06:16 > 0:06:21In here there is an apple, a carrot, a potato...
0:06:21 > 0:06:23I don't know how that got in there, but...
0:06:25 > 0:06:27It must have been really quite amazing,
0:06:27 > 0:06:29the way people had to adapt to rationing.
0:06:29 > 0:06:34Just making do and just making everything, sort of, like, last.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40Introduced in January 1940 to save food supplies,
0:06:40 > 0:06:43rationing meant that everyone, from dukes to dustmen,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46survived on the same strict weekly allowance.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53The festive season brought a few bonuses.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55One and a half pounds of sugar, eightpenny worth of meat,
0:06:55 > 0:06:57half a pound of sweets.
0:06:57 > 0:06:59These are the extra Christmas rations.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02How to get them? All the details are in food packs
0:07:02 > 0:07:04in your paper this week.
0:07:06 > 0:07:11Every Christmas from 1940 to 1954 would be constrained by shortages.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16All the time I have to be thinking about substitutes.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19And believe me, it's quite a problem!
0:07:19 > 0:07:22# Every little girl would like to be
0:07:22 > 0:07:26# The fairy on the Christmas tree...#
0:07:26 > 0:07:29The war will be over, won't it, by the time the pudding's done!
0:07:32 > 0:07:34# Every little boy has lots of fun...#
0:07:34 > 0:07:37Actually can't believe how we've just transformed
0:07:37 > 0:07:39a few old bits of wood into this!
0:07:39 > 0:07:42Actually, do you think we should do this every Christmas
0:07:42 > 0:07:44- in our real house?- No.
0:07:46 > 0:07:49I mean, it doesn't look like a pudding at the minute,
0:07:49 > 0:07:51but it might come together.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56Christmas decorations date back to the Dark Ages,
0:07:56 > 0:07:58and the family is ready to embrace tradition.
0:07:58 > 0:08:03- What is it? - It's Just Like Real Snow.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06To make sure their home is a proper winter wonderland,
0:08:06 > 0:08:09I've given the Robshaws one popular product from the time.
0:08:09 > 0:08:10# Oh, the weather outside...#
0:08:10 > 0:08:13The only thing is, have a look at what it's made out of!
0:08:13 > 0:08:14Asbestos!
0:08:14 > 0:08:17- Which we now know to be a deadly poison.- It's made of asbestos!
0:08:17 > 0:08:21- Yeah.- Do people die from asbestos poisoning?- Yeah!
0:08:21 > 0:08:25# Let it snow, let it snow Let it snow. #
0:08:25 > 0:08:27But Fred doesn't need to worry -
0:08:27 > 0:08:29the snow I've given them is asbestos-free.
0:08:37 > 0:08:39- That looks great!- Yeah...
0:08:40 > 0:08:42Unless there's some strange new use
0:08:42 > 0:08:44of the word "great" I hadn't come across before.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47I like the tree, I think it's really cool.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50You know when you have, like, fake trees that are trying to look real?
0:08:50 > 0:08:52I like it that it's fake and it knows it's fake.
0:08:54 > 0:08:55I'm feeling quite festive now.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59- I'm getting in the mood.- For what?
0:08:59 > 0:09:01- Christmas.- Oh, right!
0:09:03 > 0:09:05As Christmas Eve draws to a close,
0:09:05 > 0:09:08it's time for Rochelle and Brandon to put up their blackout blinds.
0:09:10 > 0:09:16# Have yourself a merry little Christmas...#
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Quite a significant gap on that side.
0:09:18 > 0:09:20If you were in a bomber thousands of feet up in the air,
0:09:20 > 0:09:22could you possibly see that?
0:09:22 > 0:09:25- I'm not taking the risk! - All right, I'll see what I can do.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28You put it up and suddenly the room becomes a little bit ominous.
0:09:28 > 0:09:33# ..will be out of sight...#
0:09:35 > 0:09:37- That's for Father Christmas, is it? - Yeah.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41- Good night. Good night, darling. - Good night, Fred,
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Good night, darling. Good night.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45- When you wake up it'll be Christmas morning.- Good night, dear.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49Good night, mate, try and get to sleep. No sneaking downstairs!
0:10:06 > 0:10:08CHRISTMAS BELLS JINGLE
0:10:10 > 0:10:12'Ho-ho-ho!'
0:10:13 > 0:10:15It's Christmas!
0:10:15 > 0:10:18# Here comes Santa Claus Here comes Santa Claus
0:10:18 > 0:10:20# Right down Santa Claus Lane
0:10:20 > 0:10:21# Vixen and Blitzen...#
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Oh, stockings!
0:10:24 > 0:10:26- Yes!- There you go.- See what you got.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29Oh, wow! Oh, look!
0:10:29 > 0:10:33You do realise that an orange would have been quite a precious gift
0:10:33 > 0:10:35- in the 1940s?- I did think that. - Is that it?
0:10:35 > 0:10:37Look, I got a sixpence!
0:10:37 > 0:10:40That was probably worth about a pound in today's money.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42You could buy a few sweets with that.
0:10:42 > 0:10:43Fred, do you like your stocking?
0:10:43 > 0:10:45Let's just skip to the presents!
0:10:45 > 0:10:50With toy factories requisitioned for war work, gifts were hard to come by.
0:10:50 > 0:10:54So I've asked the family to hand-make their presents.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57- It's a top!- Spinning top! - Give it a spin, then!
0:10:57 > 0:10:59Look how cool my pattern is that I drew on it.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01Oh, that is cool, isn't it?
0:11:03 > 0:11:05Oh, it's great, Fred.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07What is it?
0:11:07 > 0:11:09It's a seed drill, you make little holes in the earth
0:11:09 > 0:11:10and you can put the seeds in.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13- Do you know what it is? It's carrot fudge!- Is it?
0:11:13 > 0:11:18Miranda's carrot fudge is a wartime housewife's creation.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20- I'm really scared. - Try, go on, it can't be that bad!
0:11:20 > 0:11:23It's made from grated carrots and gelatine,
0:11:23 > 0:11:25all flavoured with orange squash.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30- You don't like it?- No!
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Of course you like it, let me taste a bit.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36It does taste more like carrots than like fudge.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38But it's nice! It's all right, isn't it?
0:11:38 > 0:11:40It's all right. It's not unpleasant.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43You don't HAVE to like it!
0:11:43 > 0:11:45LAUGHTER
0:11:45 > 0:11:47I think it's really touching, really,
0:11:47 > 0:11:51just those sort of few gifts without any razzmatazz.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54- I think it's been a great Christmas. - I think it's really cute.
0:11:54 > 0:11:55It is cute! That's right.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57And I think we've done really well with the little we've got.
0:11:59 > 0:12:04# Chestnuts roasting on an open fire...#
0:12:04 > 0:12:08The main event on Christmas Day was still the dinner.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11The girls are making the stuffing from scratch.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14What is stuffing normally made of?
0:12:14 > 0:12:16- This.- Is it? - Yeah, just breadcrumbs...
0:12:16 > 0:12:18- Is it always veggie?- Yeah.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22Chicken and turkey were expensive luxuries,
0:12:22 > 0:12:25and rationing wouldn't stretch to a traditional joint.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28For at least one wartime family,
0:12:28 > 0:12:30unrationed offal provided something special for supper.
0:12:30 > 0:12:31And like them...
0:12:31 > 0:12:33Wow!
0:12:33 > 0:12:36..the Robshaws have ox heart on the Christmas menu.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38Oh, my goodness.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40Oh!
0:12:40 > 0:12:42It's as dead as anything, isn't it?
0:12:42 > 0:12:44All right, let's just stuff it and get it in the pan
0:12:44 > 0:12:47and then it will just, sort of... that will be the end of it.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50- That, is that a vein?- We don't know.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52- Push it right in, that's it.- Oh!
0:12:54 > 0:12:56I mean, it's not like, "Oh, that will be really nice."
0:12:56 > 0:12:59But maybe it will be sort of OK.
0:13:04 > 0:13:06It would be nice if there was a turkey for dinner.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08Or chicken.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10I would love it if we did have a turkey.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14With no fresh cream available,
0:13:14 > 0:13:17Miranda and Ros are rustling up a wartime substitute.
0:13:17 > 0:13:20"Bring half a pint of water to blood-heat,
0:13:20 > 0:13:24"adding three tablespoons of household milk powder."
0:13:26 > 0:13:27This looks really tasty.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30- Can we put more sugar in?- Yeah.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35Oh, no! We've went into the blizzard!
0:13:35 > 0:13:39Don't do the blizzard on me! Do the blizzard over there!
0:13:39 > 0:13:42Go, move! Look!
0:13:44 > 0:13:47- Here we go.- He's hungry.- Here we go.
0:13:47 > 0:13:49- Oh, my Lord, look at that.- Wow.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51Look at that, but what actually is it?
0:13:51 > 0:13:53- FRED:- Is it turkey?
0:13:53 > 0:13:55- It's ox...- Ox.- ..heart.- Heart.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58- Yes.- Oh, wow, I don't want to know.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00Oh, all right. Let's carve this into slices.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02OK.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04Dinner might be on the table... DOORBELL RINGS
0:14:04 > 0:14:06..but I've got other plans for Brandon.
0:14:06 > 0:14:11- Brandon.- Yeah? - There's a delivery for you.- Oh.
0:14:12 > 0:14:14Oh, my goodness me!
0:14:15 > 0:14:18- What is it?- "Dear Brandon, the war doesn't stop for Christmas.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20"This is your call to service in the Home Guard.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23"Please report to your local defence volunteer headquarters...
0:14:23 > 0:14:26- "immediately!"- Oh!- "Quick march!"
0:14:28 > 0:14:30LAUGHTER
0:14:30 > 0:14:31I'll take one of these.
0:14:31 > 0:14:33Have a lovely Christmas, everybody! Duty calls.
0:14:33 > 0:14:35OK, bye, dear.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39- Bye. Bye, everybody.- Bye!
0:14:41 > 0:14:50# I'll be home for Christmas...#
0:14:52 > 0:14:54I do feel a bit sad, a bit, sort of, like...
0:14:54 > 0:14:57If you think about all the families where the,
0:14:57 > 0:14:59sort of husband, father, was gone.
0:14:59 > 0:15:03You'd have Christmas of just the women and the children.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07# Sweet as snow... #
0:15:07 > 0:15:11Over five million Brits fought in the war,
0:15:11 > 0:15:16and many families had empty chairs round their Christmas table.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20At 53, Brandon would've been too old to serve abroad,
0:15:20 > 0:15:23but would've been expected to do his bit with the Home Guard,
0:15:23 > 0:15:25even on Christmas Day.
0:15:27 > 0:15:28The rest of the family
0:15:28 > 0:15:32will be eating their way through that succulent roast ox heart,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34they'll be eating those crispy, golden potatoes.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37- SHE GASPS - Oh, it's quite good, actually.
0:15:37 > 0:15:39Then they'll probably have Christmas pudding after that,
0:15:39 > 0:15:42while I'm standing here in the cold.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45But I don't begrudge it, cos I'm doing it for my country.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50Rochelle is serving up her potato, carrot and apple pudding
0:15:50 > 0:15:52with the girl's emergency cream.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58Oh, what's that weird taste in my mouth?
0:15:58 > 0:16:01- Mm, that's very salty, isn't it? - Yeah.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03Mm, that's very strange, isn't it?
0:16:03 > 0:16:04That was SALT on the table,
0:16:04 > 0:16:07you didn't use that instead of the sugar, did you?
0:16:07 > 0:16:08- GIGGLING - No!
0:16:08 > 0:16:10THEY LAUGH
0:16:10 > 0:16:11- Are you sure?- Yeah, we did!
0:16:11 > 0:16:14THEY LAUGH
0:16:15 > 0:16:17- I...- Oh...
0:16:17 > 0:16:19- UKULELE MUSIC - # Mmm...
0:16:19 > 0:16:21# Dee-dee-dee-dee-dee... #
0:16:21 > 0:16:25One thing I do miss is the food, because...
0:16:25 > 0:16:27we haven't had anything... really treaty.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29# Won't you please say hello... #
0:16:29 > 0:16:33'So, something more like mince pies would be really nice.'
0:16:35 > 0:16:37I was quite shocked when I saw the heart.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40I felt kind of like, eurgh, like really,
0:16:40 > 0:16:44all my skin was going all, like, icky and stuff.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46'But, um...
0:16:46 > 0:16:47'it actually tasted quite nice.'
0:16:47 > 0:16:49AIR RAID SIREN
0:16:51 > 0:16:53- That's the air...! - Is that the..?- Yeah.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55Well, let's get out of here.
0:16:55 > 0:16:57Get to the shelter.
0:16:57 > 0:16:58OK, out, quick.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02In the run up to Christmas,
0:17:02 > 0:17:05Britain had endured 57 days of constant air-raids.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10Christmas Day had seen an unofficial break in bombing,
0:17:10 > 0:17:12but it was short-lived.
0:17:12 > 0:17:14On Sunday 29th December, 1940,
0:17:14 > 0:17:19more than 100,000 incendiary bombs set the capital alight.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23It became known as the second great fire of London.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29The Robshaws have rushed to a genuine shelter in north-east London.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31Oh...
0:17:32 > 0:17:33Oh, gawd.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35It's horrible.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37I really don't like it down here.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40It would've been, really, a most unpleasant experience.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42But you get used to anything, don't you?
0:17:42 > 0:17:45Once they'd been doing that for a few nights or a few weeks,
0:17:45 > 0:17:48you'd start to think, this is just how life is, you'd adapt to it.
0:17:48 > 0:17:53# Hail Lord we greet thee... #
0:17:54 > 0:17:56Christmas saw shelters decorated
0:17:56 > 0:18:00and sing-alongs were popular to keep up the blitz spirit.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05- Oh, my goodness me.- Hello!
0:18:05 > 0:18:07Oh, how amazing.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09Fellow east Londoner, Lionel Blair,
0:18:09 > 0:18:12was one of the many children spending Christmas
0:18:12 > 0:18:14sheltering from the bombs.
0:18:14 > 0:18:15Oh, an air raid shelter.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18- I remember this well. - Does it bring it all flooding back?
0:18:18 > 0:18:21It brings it all back to me, it really does.
0:18:21 > 0:18:23- Particularly these paper chains. - Yeah.
0:18:23 > 0:18:27We used to make them, my sister and I, we used to do them...
0:18:27 > 0:18:28AIR RAID SIREN
0:18:28 > 0:18:30Oh, God.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32Your stomach turns over, now.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35- It's a chilling sound. - It was chilling.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40Chilling. And we could hear lorries with guns on,
0:18:40 > 0:18:42shooting at the planes.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45Going to shelters was,
0:18:45 > 0:18:47you won't be alone.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49That was the terrible thing of just
0:18:49 > 0:18:52being alone and walking in the street in the blackout.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55- You wanted to be with people. - People wanted to huddle together.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57- You really did.- Yeah.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59You didn't want to be alone.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02- We were near Manor House Tube Station...- Yeah, we know it, yeah.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05..and we went there with all our bedding.
0:19:05 > 0:19:07Was the atmosphere quite pleasant down there?
0:19:07 > 0:19:11Oh, it really was. I mean, everybody would be talking and knitting,
0:19:11 > 0:19:14or doing whatever, children would be playing.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16The kids, I think, found it fun.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18- And the Tubes would come in...- Oh...
0:19:18 > 0:19:21..and often, you'd see kids get on the Tube,
0:19:21 > 0:19:22go up a few stops,
0:19:22 > 0:19:26then cross to the next platform and come back again.
0:19:26 > 0:19:27THEY LAUGH
0:19:27 > 0:19:29Yes!
0:19:29 > 0:19:31And then there were people with ukuleles,
0:19:31 > 0:19:34and my sister and I would get up and sing and dance for them.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38So, my first tour in this business was the Piccadilly line.
0:19:38 > 0:19:39- Really?- Yes!
0:19:39 > 0:19:41And that's how your career began.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44And that's how my career began, absolutely, yes.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46THEY LAUGH
0:19:46 > 0:19:49# We'll meet again
0:19:49 > 0:19:52# Don't know where
0:19:52 > 0:19:54# Don't know when
0:19:54 > 0:19:59# But I know we'll meet again Some sunny day...
0:19:59 > 0:20:01All together now!
0:20:01 > 0:20:03# We'll meet again
0:20:03 > 0:20:05# Don't know where
0:20:05 > 0:20:08# Don't know when
0:20:08 > 0:20:13# But I know we'll meet again Some sunny day. #
0:20:15 > 0:20:18I can actually say I've sung a duet with Lionel Blair.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20Can't believe it! Amazing.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22It was lovely to meet you.
0:20:22 > 0:20:27'I think Christmas meant an awful lot to people in the 1940s.'
0:20:27 > 0:20:29I think people were doing their absolute best
0:20:29 > 0:20:31to try and make the best of it.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35You can see how Christmas must have been a kind of beacon
0:20:35 > 0:20:39of hope and of light and of possible peace in the coming year.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41All right, OK, let's play.
0:20:41 > 0:20:42- I'll start.- I'm not ready!
0:20:42 > 0:20:44Oh, jokers are only...
0:20:44 > 0:20:48Christmas would've probably felt, like, a lot fairer.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50Especially when you're little and you go to school,
0:20:50 > 0:20:54I got this for Christmas, I got this for Christmas. But in the '40s it would've all been the same
0:20:54 > 0:20:56and everyone would've been in the same situation.
0:20:56 > 0:20:58- One trick.- How's that coming along?
0:20:58 > 0:21:00I think it's looking better and better.
0:21:00 > 0:21:01SHE LAUGHS
0:21:01 > 0:21:04- Do you know what it could be? It could be a pair of pants.- Yeah.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07I think this kind of no-frills Christmas
0:21:07 > 0:21:10has made me realise you actually don't need to spend a load of money,
0:21:10 > 0:21:13you don't need to be that lavish to enjoy it
0:21:13 > 0:21:14and get the best out of it
0:21:14 > 0:21:16and I think we've had a good Christmas in the '40s.
0:21:16 > 0:21:20Hopefully, in the 1950s, there's no more rationing,
0:21:20 > 0:21:24and there'll just be a lot more we can have and buy
0:21:24 > 0:21:26and I'll get better presents.
0:21:26 > 0:21:31# Well it's Christmas time once again
0:21:31 > 0:21:35# Everyone's heart Is full of cheer... #
0:21:35 > 0:21:38The Robshaws are leaving the war years behind
0:21:38 > 0:21:40and stepping into the 1950s.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44I'm sending them to celebrate this Christmas
0:21:44 > 0:21:46in a home built in 1953,
0:21:46 > 0:21:50with all the trimmings of the time.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53Oh, wow. Look at it. It's absolutely amazing.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56This is what I call a '50s kitchen.
0:21:56 > 0:22:00You can understand why people have this idea of the '50s
0:22:00 > 0:22:04as being, sort of pleasant, and the cooker looks fairly modern.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08I mean, that great big industrial thing from the '40s
0:22:08 > 0:22:13is sort of replaced by this sleek, modern-looking piece of furniture.
0:22:13 > 0:22:15- What's all this?- Oh, look at this.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18We've got pineapple chunks, what have we got there? Corned beef.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20That would be nice, wouldn't it?
0:22:20 > 0:22:24By 1954, the shortages of war were over
0:22:26 > 0:22:30and housewives were finally free to buy all the food they wanted.
0:22:30 > 0:22:33As Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan declared...
0:22:33 > 0:22:35we'd never had it so good.
0:22:35 > 0:22:36TILL RINGS
0:22:37 > 0:22:39That's a massive amount of meat, isn't it?
0:22:39 > 0:22:42You can't put it in the fridge, cos we haven't got one.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45- Feels like Christmas now.- It's like we've emerged from the gloom.
0:22:46 > 0:22:48Oh.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50- Wow.- This is colourful, isn't it? Really colourful.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53Oh, wow, this is lovely. This is so bright, isn't it?
0:22:53 > 0:22:56It's a little bit more...cheerful.
0:22:56 > 0:22:58There's no blackout curtains, there's no...
0:22:58 > 0:23:01No, that's right. It's like somebody's let the light in.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04It's really, like, almost modern.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06Do you know, this is just the sort of room
0:23:06 > 0:23:08I can imagine sitting around and enjoying Christmas in,
0:23:08 > 0:23:12sitting on that sofa, having a sherry, eating nuts.
0:23:12 > 0:23:14- It's a room for relaxing, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17- And forgetting the cares of work. - Yeah.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19- Unfortunately, you'll be in the kitchen.- Yes!
0:23:19 > 0:23:23# Jingle Bells, jingle bells
0:23:23 > 0:23:25# Jingle all the way... #
0:23:25 > 0:23:27The '50s were the decade of the decoration.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30With the blackout a thing of the past,
0:23:30 > 0:23:34in 1954, London's West End switched on its Christmas lights
0:23:34 > 0:23:36for the very first time.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39- NEWSREADER:- Who could resist a spectacular show
0:23:39 > 0:23:41of illuminated Christmas decorations
0:23:41 > 0:23:44which festoon the streets and squares of the city?
0:23:46 > 0:23:48To bring a bit of sparkle home,
0:23:48 > 0:23:51fancy decorations mass-produced in the Far East
0:23:51 > 0:23:53cost just sixpence each.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57I've sent the Robshaws a basket of delights
0:23:57 > 0:23:59to brighten up their home.
0:23:59 > 0:24:03This is very different from those home-made paper chains in the '40s.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06- It's better, isn't it?- What do you prefer? This?- This!- This.
0:24:06 > 0:24:07This is Christmas, isn't it?
0:24:07 > 0:24:10- Oh...- Don't let the tinsel go in the tea, though.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12- It didn't.- It did!- It did not. - It did.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14You'll get tinsel poisoning.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16You'll get tinsel-itis.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20# Sleigh bells in the snow
0:24:20 > 0:24:22# The snow...
0:24:22 > 0:24:24# But then I, I, I
0:24:24 > 0:24:26# Am dreaming... #
0:24:26 > 0:24:28Real trees were back in the shops,
0:24:28 > 0:24:30though demand often outstripped supply
0:24:30 > 0:24:34and customers didn't always get the evergreen of their dreams.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37Right, let's dress the tree.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40It's more of a twig.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42Can we put it all on the tree?
0:24:42 > 0:24:44Yeah. The thing with Christmas decorations is you can't overdo it.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47It's supposed to look kitschy and over the top, isn't it?
0:24:47 > 0:24:52Just be, that's it, be firm with it, be decisive.
0:24:52 > 0:24:53Oh.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57I would've thought that in the '50s you would think
0:24:57 > 0:25:00the war is over, this is what we fought for, we fought for
0:25:00 > 0:25:03a kind of English family Christmas and we could enjoy it.
0:25:03 > 0:25:05It's like a symbol of everything
0:25:05 > 0:25:08that we were trying to kind of protect, isn't it?
0:25:12 > 0:25:14To kick off their Christmas, tonight,
0:25:14 > 0:25:17the Robshaws are having a quintessential '50s celebration.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20A cocktail party.
0:25:20 > 0:25:26# I'll keep you warm in December... #
0:25:26 > 0:25:28Savoury canapes for Christmas.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32Women's magazines were selling in their millions,
0:25:32 > 0:25:36and were full of novelty nibbles designed to wow your guests.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40"Such snacks offer brief gastronomical garnish to a social gathering,
0:25:40 > 0:25:45"and happy chance that we have gone one better than the last friend we buffeted with."
0:25:45 > 0:25:48Wow. In this time of goodwill,
0:25:48 > 0:25:52it seems that I have to go one better in my goodwill gestures.
0:25:59 > 0:26:00Oh...
0:26:00 > 0:26:02Just why doesn't it...
0:26:02 > 0:26:03Ugh!
0:26:03 > 0:26:05I'm determined!
0:26:05 > 0:26:06Ah...ah!
0:26:06 > 0:26:08Oh! It's like...
0:26:08 > 0:26:09Oh!
0:26:10 > 0:26:12I'll get it out if it kills me!
0:26:12 > 0:26:14SHE LAUGHS
0:26:14 > 0:26:15Ooh!
0:26:15 > 0:26:18Look at that. I'm a domestic goddess.
0:26:18 > 0:26:20It's going well.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27Alongside Spam, Rochelle's canapes include olives and anchovies -
0:26:27 > 0:26:28exotic new ingredients
0:26:28 > 0:26:32popularized by Britain's growing Italian community.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34I don't know if that would impress my friends.
0:26:34 > 0:26:38Perhaps they'll be too polite to sort of, say it's really horrible.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42With the party prep finished,
0:26:42 > 0:26:46there's just time to get changed before their guests arrive.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48# Let's get away from sleigh bells... #
0:26:48 > 0:26:50LAUGHTER
0:26:50 > 0:26:53- This is Michael.- Hello!
0:26:53 > 0:26:55- Ooh, guests!- Hi!
0:26:55 > 0:26:57LAUGHTER
0:26:57 > 0:26:59- Friends!- Good to see you.
0:26:59 > 0:27:00Now you're here, who wants a snowball?
0:27:00 > 0:27:04- A traditional Christmas drink. - It would be rude not to.
0:27:04 > 0:27:05Thank you very much!
0:27:05 > 0:27:07My gosh, it's actually metal!
0:27:07 > 0:27:08If you don't like it, you can stab him.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12LAUGHTER
0:27:12 > 0:27:13Horrible!
0:27:13 > 0:27:15- Cheers, everybody. - Cheers, Merry Christmas!
0:27:15 > 0:27:17Merry Christmas, yeah.
0:27:17 > 0:27:19Maybe I should offer a canape round.
0:27:19 > 0:27:21- Oh, yeah, get those canapes out.- OK.
0:27:21 > 0:27:25This is spam, olive and anchovy.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27Then we have cream cheese and olive.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31- I'm going to try the... - Yeah.- ..the olive.
0:27:31 > 0:27:32For a change. Mmm.
0:27:34 > 0:27:38- Brandon, would you like to try one? - I certainly would. Thank you!
0:27:40 > 0:27:41Just go for it.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45Now, admit that was really nice!
0:27:45 > 0:27:48It would be better if they took away the spam and the anchovy...
0:27:48 > 0:27:49..and just had olives!
0:27:49 > 0:27:51- LAUGHTER - Very good!- Is it?
0:27:51 > 0:27:55I think these are fantastic canapes, I think you've done a great job.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57- Thank you.- Do you feel like the perfect 1950s housewife?
0:27:57 > 0:27:59Yeah!
0:28:02 > 0:28:04Having impressed her guests,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07Rochelle is free to join in the party games.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09LAUGHTER
0:28:09 > 0:28:14# ..Christmas, baby, baby... #
0:28:14 > 0:28:16'It was a really nice party.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19'Snowballs are just one of my favourite drinks.'
0:28:20 > 0:28:24But I wasn't brave enough to try a spam and anchovy canape, so...
0:28:24 > 0:28:28It would be nice to have some vol-au-vents or something!
0:28:31 > 0:28:35'There was pressure, because I was responsible for all the food,
0:28:35 > 0:28:38'that I should make it look as if'
0:28:38 > 0:28:40people were going to talk about it on the way home.
0:28:40 > 0:28:44They probably would talk about it on the way home, but probably for the wrong reasons!
0:28:53 > 0:28:54It's Christmas!
0:28:57 > 0:29:01RADIO PLAYS '50S EASY LISTENING MUSIC
0:29:04 > 0:29:05Yay!
0:29:05 > 0:29:07# A snow-covered house
0:29:07 > 0:29:09SHE CHUCKLES
0:29:09 > 0:29:11# On a hilltop
0:29:13 > 0:29:14# Children playing... #
0:29:14 > 0:29:18Whoo! Oh, it's the same thing as always.
0:29:18 > 0:29:21- But...- What do you mean it's the same thing, what have you got? - What's this?
0:29:21 > 0:29:23# Each one hoping... #
0:29:23 > 0:29:25I think it's a sugar mouse!
0:29:25 > 0:29:28- Aah! I love these! - I'll swap flavours.
0:29:28 > 0:29:31- I've got a coin.- I have this coin.
0:29:31 > 0:29:34This is an old English penny with George VI on it.
0:29:34 > 0:29:35Do you want to swap?
0:29:35 > 0:29:38- Chocolate!- Catch.- Ah, it's for me!
0:29:38 > 0:29:41Consumer spending almost doubled over the 1950s,
0:29:41 > 0:29:43meaning more presents under the tree.
0:29:43 > 0:29:48And I've sent the Robshaws some typical gifts of the day.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50- What is this?- It's something that you don't get at Christmas,
0:29:50 > 0:29:52it's something to help you learn.
0:29:52 > 0:29:54LAUGHTER
0:29:54 > 0:29:56Don't say it's rubbish, that's really useful!
0:29:59 > 0:30:03Ooh, they're nice! Nice gloves. What's she got?
0:30:03 > 0:30:05- Ooh... Is that like a headscarf?- Oh!
0:30:05 > 0:30:07- I think that looks really nice, actually.- Does it?- Really?
0:30:07 > 0:30:09My mum used to wear a headscarf.
0:30:09 > 0:30:12- Yeah, but your mum was a married woman, wasn't she?- Yeah.
0:30:12 > 0:30:14- You look like a...- Lady.
0:30:14 > 0:30:15- No.- Elderly lady.- Yeah.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18- All right, let's do the next present.- Yeah, me, me, me, me, me!
0:30:20 > 0:30:22Oh, that's nice!
0:30:22 > 0:30:25- It's like sort of junior... - Ooh, wow, Fred!
0:30:25 > 0:30:26Oh!
0:30:26 > 0:30:28What are they? Pinnies?
0:30:28 > 0:30:31Yeah! Just what I need to imprison myself!
0:30:31 > 0:30:33LAUGHTER
0:30:35 > 0:30:37"Lady Behave."
0:30:37 > 0:30:39LAUGHTER
0:30:39 > 0:30:43- Looks like a guide telling us... - "A guide to modern manners."
0:30:43 > 0:30:47So it tells you how to behave at dinner parties, how to serve wine,
0:30:47 > 0:30:50banquet and formal table manners, how to be a guest at a wedding.
0:30:50 > 0:30:52How to refer to the man in your life.
0:30:52 > 0:30:55- Has it got anything about teenage pregnancy? - LAUGHTER
0:30:55 > 0:31:00- See what we've got here. - Oh, it's a tie!- Nice tie, see?
0:31:00 > 0:31:03They're very, kind of, gendered presents, aren't they?
0:31:03 > 0:31:05He's got this fretwork set,
0:31:05 > 0:31:08and I've got these, kind of, manly accoutrements,
0:31:08 > 0:31:10- and you've got something that tells you how to be a lady.- Yeah.
0:31:10 > 0:31:12You've got stuff to make, well,
0:31:12 > 0:31:15stuff to help you work in the kitchen then look nice afterwards.
0:31:15 > 0:31:18There's very definitely man presents and lady presents.
0:31:18 > 0:31:22The Robshaws are celebrating in far more traditional times,
0:31:22 > 0:31:25and '50s families were expected to take part
0:31:25 > 0:31:28in all the social activities of the day.
0:31:28 > 0:31:30It's time for church, everybody!
0:31:34 > 0:31:36During the '50s, church membership grew,
0:31:36 > 0:31:40and nearly three quarters of the population attended a service
0:31:40 > 0:31:41at least once a year.
0:31:56 > 0:32:02By 2013, only 4% of Brits were part of a Christmas congregation.
0:32:02 > 0:32:07# Word of the Father
0:32:07 > 0:32:11# Now in flesh appearing
0:32:11 > 0:32:17# O come, let us adore Him... #
0:32:17 > 0:32:19I do think there's something rousing
0:32:19 > 0:32:22and moving about a Christmas church service.
0:32:22 > 0:32:23Everyone feels...
0:32:23 > 0:32:25- They feel part of something.- Yeah,
0:32:25 > 0:32:27and everyone's together.
0:32:27 > 0:32:30- ROCHELLE:- I found it really emotional.
0:32:30 > 0:32:34It actually did feel that that was Christmas.
0:32:34 > 0:32:40If I'd been Christian in the '50s, I would have wanted to go to church.
0:32:40 > 0:32:42- It is a bit long. - It wasn't that long, Fred.
0:32:42 > 0:32:44- BRANDON:- Actually, when I was his age,
0:32:44 > 0:32:46a church service did seem really, really long -
0:32:46 > 0:32:48- interminable.- It seemed long to me.
0:32:48 > 0:32:51That's the thing - all I want to do is go back,
0:32:51 > 0:32:55have a Christmas dinner and mess around with my toolkit.
0:33:02 > 0:33:04In the days before factory farming,
0:33:04 > 0:33:08chicken and turkey were expensive luxuries.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10Many families opted for a cheaper cut of meat.
0:33:10 > 0:33:14I'm making peach-baked ham.
0:33:14 > 0:33:16But with a tin of peaches,
0:33:16 > 0:33:19even the simplest joint becomes something to celebrate.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22It's a strange thing to do to peaches.
0:33:22 > 0:33:25It feels like an odd dinner and dessert all in one.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30It's food as fun rather than trying to make things stretch out.
0:33:33 > 0:33:35Here it comes!
0:33:35 > 0:33:37THEY LAUGH
0:33:38 > 0:33:41- What's she laughing at? - I don't know.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43Oh, wow, it's on a trolley!
0:33:43 > 0:33:44Here we go!
0:33:44 > 0:33:49- You're off your trolley! - Yes, I'm off my trolley!
0:33:49 > 0:33:53- We have ham with peaches.- Blimey.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55Does no-one else find that really weird?
0:33:55 > 0:33:57- It's an unusual Christmas dinner.- It is, isn't it?
0:33:57 > 0:33:59Well, it looks quite festive, doesn't it?
0:33:59 > 0:34:01- Would you like to carve it? - Shall I carve it?- Yeah.
0:34:01 > 0:34:04Oh, this is so easy to carve. It's so tender.
0:34:04 > 0:34:05- FRED:- And ox heart.- Yeah.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07Even if it's a bit weirder than ham,
0:34:07 > 0:34:10- I feel like it's a bit more festivey.- Hmm.
0:34:10 > 0:34:12What they've done is they've got ham,
0:34:12 > 0:34:14something that isn't festive,
0:34:14 > 0:34:17and then thrown a bit of colour into it to make it festive.
0:34:17 > 0:34:19- Taste is quite nice.- Yeah.
0:34:19 > 0:34:21I mean, it's got a really gross texture
0:34:21 > 0:34:23cos it's all, like, slippery and slidey in your mouth.
0:34:23 > 0:34:28- ROCHELLE:- So are you saying you don't like it?
0:34:28 > 0:34:30No, don't put words into my mouth!
0:34:30 > 0:34:32- BRANDON:- Well, I think the ham and peach combo
0:34:32 > 0:34:34is very, very good, actually.
0:34:34 > 0:34:36Do you want me to drive it out?
0:34:36 > 0:34:39Is it really heavy? Or is it stuck in the carpet?
0:34:39 > 0:34:41Slightly awkward on the carpet!
0:34:41 > 0:34:45This is the most graceful exit from a room I have ever seen.
0:34:45 > 0:34:47In the 1950s,
0:34:47 > 0:34:50the average woman did over 75 hours of housework a week,
0:34:50 > 0:34:52and Christmas was no exception.
0:34:52 > 0:34:54- BRANDON:- I'm sort of in two minds about this.
0:34:54 > 0:34:57My kind of normal, modern self would feel guilty
0:34:57 > 0:35:01about just sitting here and letting Rochelle do all the work.
0:35:01 > 0:35:04But I think, just for the purposes of this kind of experiment,
0:35:04 > 0:35:07I'm actually rather enjoying having the weekend off.
0:35:07 > 0:35:10MUSIC: Empty Stocking Blues by Floyd Dixon
0:35:15 > 0:35:17At this point in time,
0:35:17 > 0:35:18I don't feel particularly festive at all.
0:35:18 > 0:35:21I think I'm just sort of stood here at the sink.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24Christmas is a man's holiday.
0:35:24 > 0:35:26It's for men and for children.
0:35:29 > 0:35:30The '50s festive break
0:35:30 > 0:35:33meant only Christmas and Boxing Day off.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36And most men were keen to squeeze as much as they could
0:35:36 > 0:35:38into their holiday.
0:35:38 > 0:35:40I'm coming to take the boys out
0:35:40 > 0:35:44to enjoy a Christmas day tradition dating back to the Victorian era.
0:35:45 > 0:35:48- Hey, Giles!- What do you think that is?- Is it a football scarf?
0:35:48 > 0:35:51- It's a football scarf! We're going to the football!- Fred?
0:35:51 > 0:35:54- Right, we're off to the football. - Oh, right.
0:35:54 > 0:35:56So, have fun. See you later!
0:35:56 > 0:35:58- Bye.- See you, girls. Bye!
0:36:02 > 0:36:06You wouldn't get very far waiting for a bus on Christmas Day now.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09- Not these days, no.- But in the '50s, it was pretty much a normal service.
0:36:09 > 0:36:10The great thing about there being buses
0:36:10 > 0:36:13is you could have a massive Christmas dinner, get as drunk as you like -
0:36:13 > 0:36:16not that people are worried much about it in the '50s -
0:36:16 > 0:36:17and then not have to drive.
0:36:20 > 0:36:21OK, jump on, Fred.
0:36:28 > 0:36:32CHRISTMAS MUSIC PLAYS
0:36:36 > 0:36:38MUSIC DROWNS SPEECH
0:36:38 > 0:36:41'Christmas then wasn't the day off it is today.
0:36:41 > 0:36:43'Post and milkmen still did their rounds
0:36:43 > 0:36:45'and buses ran a regular service.'
0:36:48 > 0:36:50'But as car ownership increased,
0:36:50 > 0:36:53'the demand for public transport dropped.
0:36:53 > 0:36:57'London buses ran their last full Christmas service in 1979.'
0:37:02 > 0:37:04Hi there. Two adults and one child.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07- Brilliant.- There you go, my dear. Enjoy the game.- Will do.
0:37:07 > 0:37:09Thanks very much. Bye.
0:37:15 > 0:37:17Good tackle.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26- Happy Christmas! Amazing, isn't it? - I think it's fantastic.
0:37:26 > 0:37:28I think we've had a great Christmas dinner.
0:37:28 > 0:37:30I feel kind of well fed, replete, happy
0:37:30 > 0:37:32and now I'm watching the football.
0:37:32 > 0:37:34I would say it's unimprovable.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37Since the beginning of professional football, the 1880s,
0:37:37 > 0:37:38that's what people did.
0:37:38 > 0:37:40Christmas day in 1957, for example, 38 league games.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43Tens of thousands of people at these football matches.
0:37:43 > 0:37:45It was a massive tradition that ran for nearly 100 years.
0:37:45 > 0:37:47It started to die out in the '50s.
0:37:47 > 0:37:49The wives and girlfriends of the players
0:37:49 > 0:37:51didn't like them being away on the day.
0:37:51 > 0:37:53The wives of the spectators, a lot of female pressure,
0:37:53 > 0:37:54"They should be at home."
0:37:54 > 0:37:57The public transport died away so there was no way of getting to it.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59And it just became a thing of the past.
0:37:59 > 0:38:01They moved it to Boxing Day, and that became the big tradition
0:38:01 > 0:38:04and there was a stricter division between family day and football day.
0:38:04 > 0:38:06I think if you did this in modern times,
0:38:06 > 0:38:08you just sloped off after Christmas dinner
0:38:08 > 0:38:11to go and watch football, that would not be well received.
0:38:11 > 0:38:13In the '50s, you can do it and not feel guilty about it
0:38:13 > 0:38:15because it's expected of you.
0:38:17 > 0:38:19But us boys don't get all the fun.
0:38:23 > 0:38:24Back at the house,
0:38:24 > 0:38:27I've arranged for the delivery of one last Christmas present.
0:38:30 > 0:38:31Ooh!
0:38:35 > 0:38:39At the start of the decade, less than 10% of families had a TV set.
0:38:41 > 0:38:45By its end, nearly three quarters of all homes were tuning in.
0:38:46 > 0:38:48And on Christmas day 1957,
0:38:48 > 0:38:51families all over the country sat down
0:38:51 > 0:38:53to witness the making of history...
0:38:53 > 0:38:55Hey, Ernie, isn't it time for the Queen?
0:38:55 > 0:38:58..the Queen's very first televised speech.
0:39:00 > 0:39:01Oh!
0:39:01 > 0:39:05- It's a house.- I know, but it's the Queen's house.
0:39:05 > 0:39:07- Do you really love her? - I do love her.
0:39:07 > 0:39:08- Why?- I don't...
0:39:08 > 0:39:10Just shh. Listen.
0:39:11 > 0:39:12Happy Christmas...
0:39:12 > 0:39:14Oh, look - look how lovely she looks.
0:39:14 > 0:39:1725 years ago, my grandfather broadcast the first
0:39:17 > 0:39:20of these Christmas messages.
0:39:20 > 0:39:22- Oh...- Do you think she wrote her speech?
0:39:22 > 0:39:23Of course she wrote the speech.
0:39:23 > 0:39:25BOTH: No, she didn't write the speech!
0:39:33 > 0:39:35Did it make you feel Christmassy?
0:39:35 > 0:39:37It does make me feel Christmassy. I...
0:39:37 > 0:39:40I think of my grandparents when I watched that,
0:39:40 > 0:39:42cos Grandma was like, "The Queen's speech is on!"
0:39:42 > 0:39:44And we'd have to go and sit and watch it.
0:39:44 > 0:39:46I think of my mum, cos I know she liked to watch it.
0:39:46 > 0:39:49- Does it make you feel Christmassy? - Not really.- Me neither.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52We never... I don't really associate it with Christmas.
0:39:52 > 0:39:56For me, it would have made me feel very patriotic.
0:39:56 > 0:39:57I would have thought,
0:39:57 > 0:39:59"There she is, this young woman,
0:39:59 > 0:40:02"with her family in photographs behind her."
0:40:02 > 0:40:03It would have made me feel
0:40:03 > 0:40:07that she's connected to my family in the same way.
0:40:07 > 0:40:11So I would have felt strengthened by her.
0:40:11 > 0:40:14Take a charade, Fred. All right, OK.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16It's a film. How many words?
0:40:16 > 0:40:19The Robshaws' 1950s Christmas is coming to an end.
0:40:19 > 0:40:21The first word is "the"...
0:40:21 > 0:40:24But there's still time for one last party game.
0:40:24 > 0:40:26The hat... The Hat?
0:40:26 > 0:40:29- The horn.- The Queen's crown.
0:40:29 > 0:40:33'I think the 1950s Christmas has actually been more fun'
0:40:33 > 0:40:35than the '40s, and it was more colourful.
0:40:35 > 0:40:37It just felt, like, a lot happier.
0:40:37 > 0:40:38The King and I!
0:40:38 > 0:40:41'It's been great. I've enjoyed it all.'
0:40:41 > 0:40:44From the getting up in the morning with the presents
0:40:44 > 0:40:45to going to church.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47To the Christmas dinner, to the football.
0:40:47 > 0:40:51And I've got to say, it looks like the men had the best of it.
0:40:51 > 0:40:56- Throw.- Jab.- Right. What on earth is it?- It was much nicer than the '40s.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00The joint of meat was more recognisable as, like,
0:41:00 > 0:41:06- modern-day food. Ben Howard! - Ben Howard? How did you get that?
0:41:06 > 0:41:10But I am happy to leave behind the spam canapes.
0:41:10 > 0:41:12Fourth word sounds like...
0:41:12 > 0:41:18I think it was fun, but I am looking forward to having more presents.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22I guess, really, the more expensive option.
0:41:30 > 0:41:34The Robshaws' next Christmas will be in a 1960s time capsule.
0:41:38 > 0:41:42- Wow!- Look at the space that!
0:41:42 > 0:41:46It is stunning, isn't it?
0:41:49 > 0:41:51The post-war boom continued into the 1960s.
0:41:52 > 0:41:5497% employment,
0:41:54 > 0:41:59steadily rising wages, and jobs for life meant more money to splurge.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04Despite one of the coldest winters on record in 1963,
0:42:04 > 0:42:06Brits were enjoying their most comfortable Christmases
0:42:06 > 0:42:08since the end of the war.
0:42:10 > 0:42:12It is a lovely work surface.
0:42:12 > 0:42:15There's no trace of austerity in the Robshaws' hamper this
0:42:15 > 0:42:18Christmas - I've given them plenty of luxuries.
0:42:19 > 0:42:22- Chocolate!- Leave it, leave it, leave it.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25There's not an ox heart in sight.
0:42:25 > 0:42:30- I can smell... - A chicken...turkey bird.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33Chicken turkey bird?
0:42:33 > 0:42:36Look at the size of that! That's got to be turkey, hasn't it?
0:42:36 > 0:42:39You could actually use that for weight training, couldn't you?
0:42:39 > 0:42:42While we think of turkey as a Christmas staple,
0:42:42 > 0:42:46it didn't become an essential part of dinner until the 1960s.
0:42:46 > 0:42:50This young housewife is buying a Norfolk Manor Turkey.
0:42:50 > 0:42:52It was a revolution in food production
0:42:52 > 0:42:55that finally made turkey an affordable feast.
0:42:59 > 0:43:04Before the war, one hand-reared bird would cost an entire week's wages.
0:43:04 > 0:43:08But by the 1960s, factory farming meant 20,000 birds were
0:43:08 > 0:43:11leaving the biggest turkey farms each week.
0:43:12 > 0:43:18The plucker de-feathers eight or nine turkeys in 45 seconds.
0:43:18 > 0:43:22We now gobble down ten million birds each Christmas.
0:43:22 > 0:43:25I reckon this is a Christmas that is really going to
0:43:25 > 0:43:27feel like a Christmas.
0:43:27 > 0:43:29We can have a really big dinner and afterwards
0:43:29 > 0:43:33we can sit down on our sofa in that lovely room, drinking wine.
0:43:33 > 0:43:37I am really looking forward to this Christmas dinner.
0:43:40 > 0:43:44To get the family in the Christmas spirit, I've arranged
0:43:44 > 0:43:47a special seasonal treat that saw a new boom in the 1960s.
0:43:48 > 0:43:54- We've got Christmas pantomime tickets.- Oh, do you know what?
0:43:54 > 0:43:58- You look excited!- I love going to the pantomime!- Oh, no, you don't!
0:44:02 > 0:44:03Miranda's opted to stay at home,
0:44:03 > 0:44:07but the rest of the family are heading off to a traditional
0:44:07 > 0:44:11performance of a festive family favourite since the Victorian era.
0:44:11 > 0:44:12A what?
0:44:12 > 0:44:14LAUGHTER
0:44:14 > 0:44:18I heard you the first time!
0:44:18 > 0:44:21I've arranged for the Robshaws to meet one of panto's leading dames
0:44:21 > 0:44:25to discover how the 1960s saw the traditional panto transformed.
0:44:26 > 0:44:30- Hi.- Christopher Biggins! Nice to meet you.- And you, t.
0:44:30 > 0:44:35In the '60s, pantomime became personality bound, so stars of the
0:44:35 > 0:44:40pantomime or people that you knew from other fields, like singing.
0:44:40 > 0:44:46Famous singers. Cliff Richard, Engelbert Humperdinck, Tommy Steele.
0:44:46 > 0:44:50My late friend Cilla Black, she did pantomimes.
0:44:50 > 0:44:52Thanks to the burgeoning popularity of both pop music
0:44:52 > 0:44:54and television in the early '60s,
0:44:54 > 0:44:57a whole new generation of celebrity faces was emerging.
0:44:57 > 0:44:59Keen to capitalise on their success,
0:44:59 > 0:45:02theatres invited these new stars to tread the boards in panto
0:45:02 > 0:45:03for the very first time.
0:45:05 > 0:45:07You've got to move with the times.
0:45:07 > 0:45:12If you put a pop singer in as principal boy, it must be a success.
0:45:12 > 0:45:15It's got to be a success with the teenagers.
0:45:15 > 0:45:20They were really big stars, and that was an extraordinary time.
0:45:20 > 0:45:22That was cos of telly, I suppose,
0:45:22 > 0:45:26- people seeing all those famous people on television...- Exactly.
0:45:26 > 0:45:28..and now they could actually see them in real life,
0:45:28 > 0:45:30must've been thrilling really.
0:45:30 > 0:45:35It was thrilling, really, and it was a very good period for pantomime.
0:45:35 > 0:45:38Hello! Thank you very much. This way, please.
0:45:38 > 0:45:43Pantomime is great, because I'll tell you what's so good about it,
0:45:43 > 0:45:44is it brings the family together.
0:45:49 > 0:45:52It is all to do with audience participation
0:45:52 > 0:45:54and, you know, joining in.
0:45:54 > 0:45:58- "Oh, no, it's not." "Oh, yes, it is."- Boo!
0:46:01 > 0:46:04- So it's something to cheer up that dark, cold time of year.- It is.
0:46:04 > 0:46:07It's definitely a Christmas entertainment.
0:46:10 > 0:46:14- ALL:- We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!
0:46:24 > 0:46:26It's Christmas Eve!
0:46:26 > 0:46:29In the age of science, the Robshaws no longer have to worry
0:46:29 > 0:46:32about making a tree from scraps.
0:46:32 > 0:46:34It doesn't smell like a Christmas tree, does it?
0:46:34 > 0:46:38- It's the age of plastic.- It is the age of plastic, you're right.
0:46:38 > 0:46:41It's going to be artificial, isn't it?
0:46:41 > 0:46:43It's artificial feelings and emotion.
0:46:43 > 0:46:47Their glittering 1960s one is ready in three minutes.
0:46:47 > 0:46:50I've got to say, that's the first thing about this '60s Christmas
0:46:50 > 0:46:53that I don't actually like much.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56The first artificial trees were created
0:46:56 > 0:46:58by an American toilet brush company
0:46:58 > 0:47:03and their mass production saw sales of natural trees plummet by 25%.
0:47:03 > 0:47:06- Hey, look, we've got another fake tree!- Another fake one!
0:47:06 > 0:47:09Everything's fake. Everything's artificial.
0:47:09 > 0:47:12- Teeny tiny little baubles! - Another fake one as well.
0:47:12 > 0:47:14When they first arrived in the UK,
0:47:14 > 0:47:18the public rushed to buy the futuristic trees that last forever.
0:47:18 > 0:47:21'In London, the heart of the city was gayer than ever.'
0:47:21 > 0:47:24Do we decorate the tree with this tinsel?
0:47:24 > 0:47:26I think you should put it all over the tree.
0:47:26 > 0:47:30Today, 40% of us still opt for an artificial tree.
0:47:33 > 0:47:35You've got your gnome decorations.
0:47:35 > 0:47:40You've got the baubles, we've got the beads, we've got your tinsel.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43I think it's making me feel quite edgy.
0:47:43 > 0:47:45It's actually making me feel quite stressed out.
0:47:45 > 0:47:49All these decorations, I'd call it cheerful bad taste.
0:47:49 > 0:47:50That's what it is.
0:47:58 > 0:47:59Let's see it.
0:47:59 > 0:48:02Ooh, pretty!
0:48:02 > 0:48:05LAUGHTER
0:48:05 > 0:48:08- I really like it. - I love it.- I love it.
0:48:08 > 0:48:11I just think it looks like it's having a great time.
0:48:11 > 0:48:15- Yeah.- You know what I mean?- Yeah. If that tree invited you to a party...
0:48:15 > 0:48:17- You would definitely go. - That would be some party.
0:48:17 > 0:48:21- You'd move heaven and earth to go! - Yeah.
0:48:22 > 0:48:25MUSIC: Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt
0:48:39 > 0:48:42It seems like a massive leap, though, from the '50s,
0:48:42 > 0:48:45cos even though we had a little bit of tinsel
0:48:45 > 0:48:50and some paper chains, now it's just gone, "Bahh! Decorations!"
0:48:50 > 0:48:53We've even got two little mini-trees as well as our tinsel tree.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56Little gnomes... I just think it is great.
0:49:10 > 0:49:12It's Christmas!
0:49:12 > 0:49:15MUSIC: Jingle Bell Rock
0:49:26 > 0:49:28LAUGHTER
0:49:32 > 0:49:34Let's see what you've got, then.
0:49:34 > 0:49:37- A comic.- The Beano! - The Beano!- Yay!
0:49:37 > 0:49:41Over the '60s, disposable income increased by 18%.
0:49:41 > 0:49:44- SHE GASPS - Sweeties!- Let's have a look.
0:49:44 > 0:49:47- Show, show!- Sure that's not for me?
0:49:47 > 0:49:49With more cash in their pockets,
0:49:49 > 0:49:51families could afford to splash out at Christmas
0:49:51 > 0:49:53and the presents piled up.
0:49:55 > 0:49:58- Ohh!- Is it an Etch A Sketch? - Is it an Etch A Sketch?
0:49:58 > 0:50:00I used to love my Etch A Sketch.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03- Was that your favourite toy? - Yeah, it was, after Buckaroo.
0:50:03 > 0:50:06That is a very good toy, actually.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09- How do you make it...? Can you get a gap?- No.
0:50:09 > 0:50:11You can't get gaps. It's got to be a continuous line.
0:50:11 > 0:50:14Oh, so it's kind of difficult if you want to do a face, isn't it?
0:50:14 > 0:50:17I've got so many presents here, I don't know where to start.
0:50:17 > 0:50:19That one there.
0:50:21 > 0:50:23- SHE GASPS - Oh, Brandon!
0:50:23 > 0:50:24SHE LAUGHS
0:50:24 > 0:50:27- Special ladies fags, those are. - Are they?!
0:50:27 > 0:50:31By the middle of the '60s, almost half of all women smoked.
0:50:31 > 0:50:34And Brandon would have been on around 20 a day.
0:50:34 > 0:50:36Oh, it's fags for me as well!
0:50:38 > 0:50:40Oh, that's a very nice...
0:50:40 > 0:50:43- I could use that as an ashtray, couldn't I?- Yeah... Yeah.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45Cigarettes made popular presents for all the family.
0:50:45 > 0:50:50- What is that? - A super chocolate smoking set!
0:50:50 > 0:50:52Yeah!
0:50:52 > 0:50:56Cigarettes, ashtray, match and pipe.
0:50:56 > 0:50:59Wow! Fags for all. We can all smoke together.
0:50:59 > 0:51:01That's brilliant, isn't it?
0:51:01 > 0:51:03Nobody would buy that for a child these days.
0:51:03 > 0:51:05No, it would be a bit sick, wouldn't it,
0:51:05 > 0:51:08- to get that for a child?- It would.
0:51:08 > 0:51:11- It just seems wrong.- Yeah. - But it felt so normal.
0:51:14 > 0:51:16- Wow!- What's he got?
0:51:16 > 0:51:18Oh, my goodness, don't tell me!
0:51:18 > 0:51:21He's got a Johnny Seven! He has actually...
0:51:21 > 0:51:23And I never ever got one of those.
0:51:23 > 0:51:27Every year, I'd go, "Can I have a Johnny Seven?"
0:51:27 > 0:51:29- Look at it.- Seven guns...
0:51:29 > 0:51:33Seven guns in one. It's a complete weapons system.
0:51:33 > 0:51:38'Your squad is ready for you to lead them through.
0:51:38 > 0:51:41'With Johnny Seven OMA, you charge.
0:51:41 > 0:51:43'Fire a grenade...'
0:51:43 > 0:51:47- "Push grenade release button." - Where's the grenade release button?
0:51:47 > 0:51:49- Illustration 2B.- Whoa!
0:51:49 > 0:51:52Fantastic! Look at that!
0:51:52 > 0:51:56Every year, I said, "Mum, Dad, can I have a Johnny Seven this year?"
0:51:56 > 0:51:58And they never got me one.
0:51:58 > 0:51:59But all these years later, now,
0:51:59 > 0:52:01I've got a Johnny Seven in my living room!
0:52:01 > 0:52:04But you haven't got it, though. He's got it. It's not yours.
0:52:04 > 0:52:06- Yeah, but I can play with it.- Ahh...
0:52:08 > 0:52:11They're presents that are very clearly stereotyping him
0:52:11 > 0:52:14- as the young male, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:52:14 > 0:52:17You know, he's going to grow up to be a smoking,
0:52:17 > 0:52:21gun-toting sort of civil servant or something, isn't he?
0:52:22 > 0:52:25- I remember getting one of those for Christmas.- Yeah.
0:52:25 > 0:52:27That's lovely, isn't it?
0:52:27 > 0:52:30Oh, what's she got? What you got?
0:52:30 > 0:52:33- Jerry and the Peacemakers. - Pacemakers, I think you'll find!
0:52:33 > 0:52:35LAUGHTER
0:52:35 > 0:52:37Do you reckon they're like the One Direction?
0:52:37 > 0:52:41Rochelle has not been left out of the extravagant haul of gifts.
0:52:42 > 0:52:45- Ta-da!- Oh!
0:52:45 > 0:52:48- Goodness! Oh!- Isn't that lovely?
0:52:48 > 0:52:52- A beautiful new hoover. - I think I'll start right away.
0:52:52 > 0:52:58My new slippers and a fag... That's exactly what I need, isn't it?!
0:52:58 > 0:53:01This has got a number of shooting actions, Frederick, as well.
0:53:01 > 0:53:04You wouldn't know what I can do with this.
0:53:04 > 0:53:06The thing is, they've got presents that are for themselves,
0:53:06 > 0:53:09their own books, their own music, to enjoy for themselves.
0:53:09 > 0:53:12- But you've got something that's for others.- Yes, it's to serve.
0:53:12 > 0:53:15- Yeah.- Yes, I am here to serve. Yeah.
0:53:36 > 0:53:39While the family relax and enjoy their presents,
0:53:39 > 0:53:42Rochelle is getting stuck in to their first Christmas bird.
0:53:42 > 0:53:45Is that...? What end is that?!
0:53:45 > 0:53:47What end is that?
0:53:47 > 0:53:51God, I'd be a terrible gynaecologist.
0:53:54 > 0:53:57Oh... I think that was his head.
0:53:59 > 0:54:04Brandon's getting to grips with something infinitely more exciting than a turkey.
0:54:04 > 0:54:08So, the great thing about this is you can play with another person.
0:54:08 > 0:54:11Because another person can have that while you have this.
0:54:11 > 0:54:14So you can actually have battles with it.
0:54:14 > 0:54:16I mean, I don't really approve of these kind of military toys.
0:54:16 > 0:54:18I don't think...
0:54:20 > 0:54:23..I'd feel comfortable about buying this today.
0:54:23 > 0:54:26In the '60s, we grew up in the shadow of the Second World War.
0:54:26 > 0:54:28Toy shops were full of war toys.
0:54:28 > 0:54:32You were just absolutely surrounded by this kind of war culture.
0:54:32 > 0:54:37And, you know, soldiers were heroes in the 1960s.
0:54:37 > 0:54:43So it was probably a more glamorous sort of toy then than it would be now.
0:54:43 > 0:54:44Fire!
0:54:51 > 0:54:54- I'm busy. - HE CALLS OUT
0:54:55 > 0:54:58Having worked out the turkey's head from its tail,
0:54:58 > 0:55:02Rochelle is ready to serve up the family's third Christmas dinner in a row.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05- Here we go. - Whoa! Look at the size of that bird!
0:55:05 > 0:55:09What a creature! Ready, steady...
0:55:09 > 0:55:11- Yes!- Do your own one!
0:55:13 > 0:55:17You think the turkey's been around forever, but I suppose this was a new thing in the '60s.
0:55:17 > 0:55:20- You can have the first turkey. - Thanks very much.
0:55:20 > 0:55:23Oh, yeah, give me a devilled horseback. Thank you.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30- It's like a Sunday dinner, isn't it, like a roast dinner?- Yeah.
0:55:30 > 0:55:33You wouldn't have that, particularly, on a Sunday dinner.
0:55:33 > 0:55:36So there's a start of something a little bit extra creeping in.
0:55:36 > 0:55:38And, obviously, you wouldn't wear hats!
0:55:38 > 0:55:42- And also, you wouldn't have a bird that size.- No, no.
0:55:42 > 0:55:44I mean, many, many...
0:55:44 > 0:55:49- This is enough, isn't it?- Best one so far.- Yeah, that's true.
0:55:49 > 0:55:54This is like the prototype Christmas dinner from whence it all started.
0:55:54 > 0:55:56And then all the little bits,
0:55:56 > 0:55:59like your cranberry sauce and your bread sauce
0:55:59 > 0:56:03and your sort of additions start adding into this.
0:56:03 > 0:56:05- This is your baseline.- Yeah.
0:56:05 > 0:56:08Here's to Rochelle, and merry Christmas to everybody.
0:56:08 > 0:56:10- Merry Christmas.- Cheers!
0:56:15 > 0:56:19Polly and I are popping in for a drink and some festive fun and games.
0:56:19 > 0:56:22They'll think we're carol singers and not open the door.
0:56:22 > 0:56:25- Giles and Polly! - Happy Christmas.- Happy Christmas.
0:56:25 > 0:56:27Cheers!
0:56:27 > 0:56:29Cheers, Polly. Cheers, Giles.
0:56:29 > 0:56:35The '60s, to me, that seemed to be when Christmas has finally arrived at a recognisable form.
0:56:35 > 0:56:38- That's Christmas as I know it. - Green, left foot.
0:56:38 > 0:56:40There's more happiness
0:56:40 > 0:56:42and it just feels a lot more like a holiday.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46In the '40s, it didn't really feel like a special day,
0:56:46 > 0:56:49because you just had some carrot fudge and a spinning top.
0:56:49 > 0:56:51But now it definitely does feel like Christmas
0:56:51 > 0:56:55cos we've got the mulled wine, the mince pies, and tinsel everywhere.
0:56:55 > 0:56:56Come on!
0:56:56 > 0:56:58People have just spent more on Christmas.
0:56:58 > 0:57:00It's been a bigger deal
0:57:00 > 0:57:03and slowly become less of a Christian festival
0:57:03 > 0:57:04and more of a celebration.
0:57:04 > 0:57:06If you're very religious,
0:57:06 > 0:57:09I think it takes the idea of Christmas away a little bit.
0:57:09 > 0:57:13But if you're like me, who's just in it for the presents,
0:57:13 > 0:57:14I think it's great.
0:57:14 > 0:57:18If you kick me in the nose, I will literally end your Christmas.
0:57:18 > 0:57:20I can see that, after the war years,
0:57:20 > 0:57:23that having a little bit of colour and a little bit of tinsel
0:57:23 > 0:57:27and more food on the table is obviously really nice for a family.
0:57:27 > 0:57:30But I can only assume that from this point onwards,
0:57:30 > 0:57:34consumerism goes beyond the Christmas scale.
0:57:34 > 0:57:36Nobody fart.
0:57:36 > 0:57:37I feel nervous.
0:57:37 > 0:57:40The '60s are starting to feel like a modern Christmas
0:57:40 > 0:57:44and it's also starting to feel more individual to the family.
0:57:44 > 0:57:46I'm looking forward to more Christmases, actually.
0:57:46 > 0:57:48So far, every year, it's only got better.
0:57:51 > 0:57:54- There you go!- Ho-ho-ho!
0:57:54 > 0:57:58Next time, the Robshaws continue their journey through Yuletides past.
0:57:58 > 0:58:01I never thought of deep-frying an avocado before,
0:58:01 > 0:58:04but it seems like a good idea at the time.
0:58:04 > 0:58:07- This is the Vic at Christmas time. - Ooh!
0:58:07 > 0:58:09It's the dog!
0:58:09 > 0:58:13Will it bring them any closer to the perfect family Christmas?
0:58:13 > 0:58:16- Tinky Winky! - That'll do. Pull him up now.
0:58:16 > 0:58:18- My arm's going to come off! - Pull him off!
0:58:18 > 0:58:21MUSIC: Merry Xmas Everybody by Slade