Christmas in Leeds

Your favourite days out round Leeds
User avatar
cnosni
Site Admin
Posts: 4199
Joined: Wed 28 Mar, 2007 4:47 pm

Post by cnosni »

stevief wrote: wiggy wrote: Priestly House wrote: Nowt new or exciting there then? Same blurb as the past few years from LCC. BAN Xmas ads and xmas products in the shops until late november! Bring back roasted chestnuts braziers on every street corner! I loved xmas once - but am now a "bah humbug" sceptic....it's just tepid commercial rubbish. well said that man...and re-open lewis's,and decorate the windows,like in days of yore...this country becomes more like yank land as every second goes by...we sholud keep our traditions,keep our culture...christmas should be just that...christmas!! You're right about us becoming yank clones wiggy.When I was a kidHallowe'en came and went.It was mischievious night(Nov.4)when it all 'happened' and I'd never heard of a pumpkin,it was a hollowed out swede with a candle inside(our Dad did the hollowing) our'mischief'consisted mainly of knocking on someones door and legging it,not the urban terrorism that sometimes masquerades as 'Trick or treat'.Signed Grumpy Old Man. Interestingly it is the proper tradition is to use swedes instead of pumpkins.The tradition of hollowing out a swede is of irish origin and when they began to migrate to america in the 19th century there were no swedes there for them to use,so they used pumpkins instead to carry on the celebratory tradition(which i believe is something to do with the soles of the dead,the candle that is.dont quote me though!)So your dad has had the tradition passed down to him through irish migrants who settled here,and is therefore the traditional method.
Don't get me started!!My Flickr photos-http://www.flickr.com/photos/cnosni/Secret Leeds contactinfo@secretleeds.com

dsco
Site Admin
Posts: 884
Joined: Fri 26 Jan, 2007 8:21 am

Post by dsco »

Mm was going to comment on this - the trick or treat tradition is a derivation of an old Scottish (and Irish maybe?) tradition of 'guising' where kids would go around and perform something on their neighbour's doorsteps - a song, or a joke or similar - in return for sweets. Don't think there was ever really the threat of a trick backing it up.I know this all to well, cos when all the other kids were trick or treating I had to do a whole song and dance routine to get my grubby little mitts on some sweeties (the joys of having a very Scottish mum).It does kind of take the sting out of the American doorstep mugging thing though - guess 'guising' went over to the States, and then came back in a different form. I was under the impression that the trick or treat thing all really kicked off in the UK when the movie ET came out, with all the Halloween scenes in that.Has anyone seen the film Mischief Night by the way? It's dead good, and all set/filmed in Leeds.dsco
Contact me via ask@tyrell.mobi if you have any questions or comments about the site.

dsco
Site Admin
Posts: 884
Joined: Fri 26 Jan, 2007 8:21 am

Post by dsco »

Oh and by the way - Santa is in his grotto at Abbey House Museum in the run up to Christmas (whether it is in fact the real one, I couldn't say...)http://www.festiveleeds.com/museum/dsco
Contact me via ask@tyrell.mobi if you have any questions or comments about the site.

wiggy
Posts: 1088
Joined: Tue 26 Jun, 2007 9:39 am

Post by wiggy »

cnosni wrote: wiggy wrote: Priestly House wrote: Nowt new or exciting there then? Same blurb as the past few years from LCC. BAN Xmas ads and xmas products in the shops until late november! Bring back roasted chestnuts braziers on every street corner! I loved xmas once - but am now a "bah humbug" sceptic....it's just tepid commercial rubbish. well said that man...and re-open lewis's,and decorate the windows,like in days of yore...this country becomes more like yank land as every second goes by...we sholud keep our traditions,keep our culture...christmas should be just that...christmas!! Wiggy i would certainly be able to tell you were of my generation even if i didnt already know it.Yes i used to look forward to Lewis'window at christmas,especially the action man display they seemed to have each year!Brings back memories of going to see santa there on the top floor,the grotto was magic!Took my teenage kids there when they were little and it all semmed a bit flat compared to what it used to be,maybe rose tinted glasses but somehow i dont think so.Had a bit of an argument when brother in law came over from scouse land the other week.He was not happy when i told him that the Santa in Lewis' wa the real santa and that all the others around the country were his helpers.He states that the one in Liverpool was the real santa,and then our lass says the same thing.But i know they are wrong because me mam told me he was the genuine article.Do you remember those various little "Grottos" around Leeds,sort of little nativity scenes in a fishtank like box that were scattered around the town centre,always seemed to remember one outside old Millgarth Fuzz station. ha! tell your cousin that santa always had a yorkshire accent,and never a scouse one.my mam always told me that the lewis's santa was the real one and all the others just worked for him....so we both know its true mate....his fairies were cute too,and all female in them days aswell...lol
i do believe,induced by potent circumstances,that thou art' mine enemy?

wiggy
Posts: 1088
Joined: Tue 26 Jun, 2007 9:39 am

Post by wiggy »

stevief wrote: wiggy wrote: Priestly House wrote: Nowt new or exciting there then? Same blurb as the past few years from LCC. BAN Xmas ads and xmas products in the shops until late november! Bring back roasted chestnuts braziers on every street corner! I loved xmas once - but am now a "bah humbug" sceptic....it's just tepid commercial rubbish. well said that man...and re-open lewis's,and decorate the windows,like in days of yore...this country becomes more like yank land as every second goes by...we sholud keep our traditions,keep our culture...christmas should be just that...christmas!! You're right about us becoming yank clones wiggy.When I was a kidHallowe'en came and went.It was mischievious night(Nov.4)when it all 'happened' and I'd never heard of a pumpkin,it was a hollowed out swede with a candle inside(our Dad did the hollowing) our'mischief'consisted mainly of knocking on someones door and legging it,not the urban terrorism that sometimes masquerades as 'Trick or treat'.Signed Grumpy Old Man. i live down south now,and i have asked a few people about mischievious night and no one knows what i mean,neither have they heard of parkin...philistines!i l loved the smell of burning swede.i have made a concious decision to try and have an old fasioned christmas.i used to walk around just to look at the lights,i loved the smells in the market at christmas time...but there is no urgencey anymore,as the shops are open 24/7...365...yank style again i am afraid...
i do believe,induced by potent circumstances,that thou art' mine enemy?

Phill_d
Posts: 2638
Joined: Wed 21 Feb, 2007 6:22 am

Post by Phill_d »

When i think of Christmas i always think of Lewis's & that famous grotto mentioned on here a few times already, As a kid the excitment was as electric. I found one of the old Santa snaps we all must have stuck in an old box somewhere. Why don't we dig out some old uns & have a laugh of how we were as kids & what sort of clobber dear old mam used to make us wear, I'll show you mine if you show me yours so to speak
Attachments
__TFMF_fld0132o1eawpqm20rncwk45_345e5cc3-7817-4d91-8fd5-6220e239b377_0_main.jpg
__TFMF_fld0132o1eawpqm20rncwk45_345e5cc3-7817-4d91-8fd5-6220e239b377_0_main.jpg (68.4 KiB) Viewed 2794 times
A fool spends his entire life digging a hole for himself.A wise man knows when it's time to stop!(phill.d 2010)http://flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/

Phill_d
Posts: 2638
Joined: Wed 21 Feb, 2007 6:22 am

Post by Phill_d »

O.M.G look at the basin haircut Taken about 1970/71 in the days when we were allowed to sit on Santa's knee. This was just before we came away with the naff present you got,, crayons in a box or something useless like that
Attachments
__TFMF_fld0132o1eawpqm20rncwk45_d7208dd2-ed6b-46a3-93f1-9d8db984fe40_0_main.jpg
__TFMF_fld0132o1eawpqm20rncwk45_d7208dd2-ed6b-46a3-93f1-9d8db984fe40_0_main.jpg (50 KiB) Viewed 2794 times
A fool spends his entire life digging a hole for himself.A wise man knows when it's time to stop!(phill.d 2010)http://flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/

User avatar
chameleon
Site Admin
Posts: 5462
Joined: Thu 29 Mar, 2007 6:16 pm

Post by chameleon »

It was always a treat to go to Lewis's phill and going back some years before your photo, it wasn't unusual to queue up one staircase and down the floor to get your turn .Think I still have a photo somewhere taken one year of me sat on Muffin the Mule. Thinks: not even sure I'm allowed to even say that these days!!Lewis's Santa was always the real one wasn't he, never really thought then how the ones in other stores fitted in though.

Phill_d
Posts: 2638
Joined: Wed 21 Feb, 2007 6:22 am

Post by Phill_d »

Too right Chamaleon HE WES THE MAN indeed! I like the muffin the mule thing I suppose there's inuendo in just about everything so why these innocent things become politically incorrect is out of order
A fool spends his entire life digging a hole for himself.A wise man knows when it's time to stop!(phill.d 2010)http://flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/

User avatar
cnosni
Site Admin
Posts: 4199
Joined: Wed 28 Mar, 2007 4:47 pm

Post by cnosni »

Phill_d wrote: O.M.G look at the basin haircut Taken about 1970/71 in the days when we were allowed to sit on Santa's knee. This was just before we came away with the naff present you got,, crayons in a box or something uninspiring if i remember rightly Bloody hell i know ive got one somewhere,in the card as well,cant find it at the moment.That trick or treat thing definitely started with ET,that little creep has some answering to do.
Don't get me started!!My Flickr photos-http://www.flickr.com/photos/cnosni/Secret Leeds contactinfo@secretleeds.com

Post Reply