Christmas 2006 will see the UK consuming 10 million turkeys, 25 million Christmas puddings, 250 million pints of beer and 35 million bottles of wine.

7 million children leave mince pies and a drink for Santa on Christmas Eve.

The UK spends £20bn on Christmas with £1.6bn going on food and drink.

The decorating of fir trees can be traced back to Roman times but was thought to be first introduced into this country in 1841 by Prince Albert. The custom of hanging fruit and baubles is both pagan and Christian. The decorations were originally used to symbolise the fruits of the earth and the fiery sun. Today seen in the form of tinsel and baubles.

Mistletoe has a magical reputation of conferring fertility. The berries grow in pairs on the stem and their milky, translucent appearance suggests male sexuality! A kissing bough would be suspended from a hook at the beginning of the Christmas season and young men were permitted to kiss any girl they managed to draw under the bough. These unsuitable associations led to many churches banning it and this still exists today in numerous parishes.

Finally an average household would have spent £1.50 on electricity in 2005 this year it will be about £1.50 again but if they were on a flexible contract it could be nearer 0.75p