Of course it wasn't always like that. So I thought it would be fun to look back on my first Christmas. I have no idea whether we owned a television on that first Christmas in 1952.
I do know there was just one channel - BBC. Programmes didn't start until 11 am and television shut down at 11.15 pm.
It was a rather soporific line-up as well. The programmes started with a Christmas Day church service which lasted for an hour and then there was a closedown from midday until 3.20 pm. A Laurel and Hardy film "Swiss Miss" was followed at 4.20 pm by a 10 minute interlude (presumably to calm down after the excitement of the film). At 4.30 pm there were songs and games for the very young with Andy Pandy and Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men.
At 5 pm there were more children's programmes with "One Way Genie" and then another closedown from 6 until 7.30. The highlight of the TV watching day was a Christmas Party with many of the leading acts of the day including Arthur Askey, Norman Wisdom, Frankie Howerd, Petula Clark, Betty Driver (later to play Betty in Coronation Street - her of the hot pots) and Tommy Cooper.
At 9.15 pm there was a 15 minute Christmas card from Korea and at 9.30 pm 1066 and all that. At 11 pm there was news and weather (in sound only) and everything shut down at 11.15 pm. So in effect there was only just over seven hours of tele on Christmas Day and it was all in black and white of course.
Looking at the Christmas Party acts, sadly I believe they have all passed on apart from Petula Clark who is still with us at the age 0f 88. Of the others, there were some classic acts with Tommy Cooper everyone's favourite and one of the greatest comedy magicians of all time. Arthur Askey I found to be an annoying little man with his stupid catchphrase "hello playmates", his puerile humour and that dreadful Bee Song which saw him run around the stage pretending to be a Bee. For some unknown reason Askey seemed to think this was clever and the thing he would forever be remembered for whilst, in reality, it was just embarrassing. A couple of years ago I seem to remember Noel Fielding doing a similar routing which was equally embarrassing and unfunny.
The Bee Song was written by Kenneth Blain and the truly awful lyrics were:
Bzz-bzz
Oh, what a glorious thing to be
A healthy, grown-up, busy-busy bee
Whiling away the passing hours
Pinching all the pollen from the cauliflowers
I'd like to be a busy-busy bee
Being just as busy as a bee can be
Flying around the garden, sweetest ever seen
Taking back the honey to the dear old queen
Bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz, honey bee, honey bee
Bzz if you like but don't sting me
Bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz, honey bee, honey bee
Buzz if you like, but don't sting me
Bzz-bzz
There's lots more but its equally awful.
* * *
When the Steeple Tower development came to Hethersett almost 30 years ago there were fears that residents living there would feel they were out on a limb and not part of the village.
Now nobody thinks that way. People don't refer to Steeple Tower as a separate development - it's just a part of the village.
Thankfully the same comments haven't been made about the new North Hethersett development. Potential buyers often turn to Facebook to ask what the village is like and not the particular area they are looking at.
I make these comments in light of the Advent trail which will see 24 homes/businesses festoon their windows with Christmas cheer. Many of these have been on relatively new developments, proving that we really are one village - albeit an ever-growing one.
* * *
Spent a couple of days over the weekend in North Norfolk. The weather forecast said it wouldn't rain but it did - both in Sheringham on Saturday and in Felbrigg on Sunday.
Somehow it doesn't feel like Christmas with all this masks on, masks off palaver and the most upsetting part is not being able to enjoy Christmas with the grandchildren. Sat in a cafe in Sheringham really missing being with them. Last Christmas we took them on the North Norfolk Railway and it was a really special day. This year we are unlikely to see them until Christmas is almost upon us. Hopefully by next Christmas things will be better and we can spend more quality time with the Kidlings.
Meanwhile I took lots of photos which I will share over the next few days, starting with Sheringham from Saturday. This included a rainbow over the sea.