A growing number of British people are abandoning long-standing Christmas habits, such hanging stockings, singing carols, and setting out mince pies for Santa.
According to a statewide study conducted by the Chef and Brewer Collection of country pubs, people's perspectives and behaviours towards the country's yearly holiday celebrations are changing, defying traditional norms.
Out of 22 long-established festive traditions, including sending Christmas cards, the Royal address to the nation and more, just one tradition – watching Christmas films – has increased in popularity this century with respondents being asked which traditions from 25 years ago they still do today.
Meanwhile, the number of people hanging stockings (23%, down from 48%), singing carols (13%, down from 28%) and putting mince pies out for Santa (17%, down from 48%) has dwindled, according to the OnePoll survey of 2,000 UK adults in November 2023.
Despite wider traditions seemingly in decline, country pubs remain the UK's favourite type of pub to visit at Christmas, with Brits citing the festive atmosphere to enjoy with family and friends (41%), top-quality food and drink (14%), and log fires (11%) as driving factors.
It turns out that the nation's favourite Christmas condiment is cranberry sauce (36%), followed by roast potatoes (27%), turkey (22%), and pigs in blankets (18%) during dinner.
Meanwhile, the study revealed one particularly interesting break away from tradition when it comes to festive food, with a notable one in 20 people (4%) drenching their Christmas dinner in tomato or brown sauce.
Additionally, the survey revealed that only 16% of respondents will have a real Christmas tree this year, with 70% choosing an artificial one and 14% having none at all.
When it comes to Christmas films, Elf, Home Alone, and Love Actually reign supreme as the nation's top three festive flicks, with It's a Wonderful Life ranking as the number one classic seasonal movie (released in 1946). Surprisingly, Die Hard, which is often at the centre of Christmas film debates, claimed fifth spot.