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Christmas Facts
An old wives' tale says that bread baked on Christmas Eve will never go mouldy.
Christmas pudding was first made as a kind of soup with raisins and wine in it.
The turkey was imported to France by the Jesuits and it is still known in some French dialects as a 'Jesuite'.
December 25th was not celebrated as the birthday of Christ until the year AD / ACE 440.
In 1649, Oliver Cromwell abolished Christmas and he declared it to be an ordinary working day. Anybody caught celebrating Christmas was arrested.
In the nineteenth century, the British Post Office used to deliver cards on Christmas morning.
Father Christmas has two addresses, Edinburgh and the North Pole. Letters addressed to 'TOYLAND' or 'SNOWLAND' go to Edinburgh, but letters addressed to 'THE NORTH POLE' have to be sent there because there really is such a place!
The first Christmas stamp was released in Canada in 1898.
Christmas crackers were invented by Thomas Smith. He had imported some French novelties to sell as Christmas gifts, but these were not popular until he wrapped them up and added a snapper.
It is not until Twelfth Night (the Feast of the Epiphany) that the figures of the Three Kings are supposed to be added to the Christmas crib.
In Germany, Twelfth Night is known as 'Three Kings Day'.
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Famous people born on Christmas Day
1642
Sir Isaac Newton - An English mathematician and physicist. Famous for his discoveries in gravitation, planetary motion, optics and the development of calculus.
1899
Humphrey Bogart - An American film actor who often played tough crooks or detectives. Best known films include The Maltese Falcon (1941), Casablanca (1942) and The African Queen (1952).
1936
Princess Alexandra - Daughter of the Duke of Kent and Princess Marina of Greece.
1945
Alice Cooper - A pop music singer. (Real name Vincent Furnier.) His best selling record is School's Out, which headed the music charts in July, 1972.
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Famous people who died on Christmas Day
1946
W. C. Fields - An American film comedian. Best known for his cynical wit. He often played character of a heavy drinking, child hating, dog hating, confidence man. He was highly acclaimed as Mr. Micawber in the film David Copperfield (1935).
1977
Charlie Chaplin - An English, multi-talented film star. He is remembered for his 'little tramp' character in silent movies. He also wrote screenplays and directed and composed music for his films. Chaplin's best known films include The Gold Rush (1925), Modern Times (1936) and The Great Dictator (1940).
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