Join in

Send page to a friend

24th of December - Christmas Eve

24th of December is the 358th day of the year

Christmas Eve:
For most of us in Britain regardless of religious belief or affiliation, December 25th as Christmas Day is a special time, one to be celebrated with family and perhaps the very closest friends. December 24th, Christmas Eve, was and to a certain extent still is a time for wider social contact: the habit among plenty even of the irreligious of attending midnight mass for a good Christmas lung clearance with hymns and carols is a reminder of this, as is the dash to deliver presents. In earlier times wassailing, Christmas revels, Christmas plays and other house-visiting customs like the Hooden Horse in Kent were examples of this drive to gather – and for the less well-off to be served with welcome food and drink by those visited. For some newer arrivals in Britain like our Polish community the meal on Christmas Eve – traditionally of 13 dishes – is as important as the turkey and trimmings for the rest of us on the 25th.

Choose another day:

Brit Quote:
I am half British and half American. My passport has an eagle with a tea bag in its mouth - Bob Hope
More Quotes

On this day:
Benjamin Franklin Arrives in London - 1724, First Bomb Dropped on English Soil - 1914
More dates from British history

click here to view all the British counties

County Pages