Christmas trees become popular in the UK from 1841 when Prince Albert erected a tree in Windsor Castle following a German tradition. Fir trees have been decorated at Christmas time in Germany since the 8th century.
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Carols began as an old English custom called wassailing, toasting neighbours to a long life.
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The Queen's Christmas speech was first televised in 1957.
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The sun sets on 24 December at 3.55pm in the UK, and rises the following morning at 8.05am.
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Many theologians estimate that Jesus wasn't born on December 25 but sometime in September between 6BC and 30AD.
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The poinsettia is a traditional Christmas flower. In Mexico (its original birthplace), the poinsettia is known as the "Flower of the Holy Night".
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The world's tallest Xmas tree at 221ft high was erected in a Washington shopping mall in 1950.
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In Sweden, a common Christmas decoration is the Julbukk, a small figurine of a goat. It is usually made of straw. Scandinavian Christmas festivities feature a variety of straw decorations in the form of stars, angels, hearts and other shapes, as well as t
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