London visitor

It’s not much of an exaggeration to say that A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is one of the reasons we still celebrate the holiday today.  Published in 1843, it helped bring the holiday back into prominence in the United Kingdom after years of subdued celebrations following the English Civil War and the Commonwealth Period.  Its massive success as a book has turned it into a Christmas classic since the days of silent films and many a movie and television adaptation has been made since the advent of these media.  We’ve outlined five of our favorite adaptations below, and you can share some of your own favorites with us in the comments.

The Man Who Invented Christmas

While not an adaptation per se, The Man Who Invented Christmas is a great fictional retelling of how Charles Dickens wrote one of the best Christmas stories around.  Dan Stevens stars as Dickens, who is staring poverty in the face unless he comes up with a new hit and fast.  The movie explores his creative process as the people and events around him help to inspire A Christmas Carol and teach Dickens himself the true meaning of Christmas. 

A Christmas Carol (1984) 

My personal favorite is the 1984 made-for-TV adaptation starring George C. Scott as Ebeneezer Scrooge.  In addition to being a very close adaptation of the original book, it has one of the largest all-start casts of any Christmas Carol adaptation.  Besides Scott, the movie features David Warner as Bob Cratchit (one of his rare good guy roles), Roger Rees as Scrooge’s nephew Fred, Angela Pleasance as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Edward Woodward as the Ghost of Christmas Present, Joanne Whalley as Scrooge’s sister Fan, and also Michael Gough and Mark Strickson. 

Blackadder’s Christmas Carol

Blackadder’s Christmas Carol certainly makes the list for turning the classic story on its head.  Rowan Atkinson stars as the Victorian Age member of the Blackadder Clan, Ebeneezer Blackadder, who is a kind, generous man—the absolute opposite of his ancestors.  In a reverse of the classic Dickens story, the Christmas Spirit shows him his past lives to show how much better he is, but on viewing a Christmas future where he’s subservient to Baldrick, he opts to become as mean-spirited as any of his forebears.  The show also features a “who’s who” of comedic actors, including Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Miriam Margolyes, Nicola Bryant, Jim Broadbent, Miranda Richardson, and Robbie Coltrane. 

The Muppet Christmas Carol

The Muppet Christmas Carol is honestly considered one of the best adaptations for its use of Dickens as a narrator (even if he’s played by Gonzo the Great).  It stars Michael Caine as Scrooge in one of his favorite roles, along with most of the Muppets filling in as other characters, including Kermit as Bob Cratchit, Miss Piggy as Mrs. Cratchit, and Robin as Tiny Tim.  Despite the usual Muppet silliness, it sticks very closely to the story and features some great songs including “When Love is Found.” 

A Christmas Carol (1951) 

Many would rank this 1951 adaptation starring Alastair Sim as the best one of all.  The film expands on the story to show what a truly despicable person Ebeneezer Scrooge is, helping to make his ultimate turn towards good all the more rewarding for the viewer.  Of course, it’s not all doom and gloom and there are some genuinely comedic moments to break up the Scrooge’s dourness.  If you’re looking at other lists ranking Christmas Carol adaptations, you’ll find this one at the top, if not close to it.  This film essentially set the bar for every adaptation that followed. 

The King, Queen Consort and members of the royal family will spend Christmas at Sandringham for the first time in three years, Buckingham Palace has confirmed.

They will celebrate Christmas Day at the late Queen’s former Norfolk Estate with members of the monarchy, marking a return to traditional royal festivities.

The gathering at Sandringham will be the first time the royal family has spent Christmas at the private royal residence since 2019, and it will be a poignant period following the death of the Queen in September.

Buckingham Palace said in a brief statement: “Their Majesties The King and The Queen Consort accompanied by Members of the Royal Family will attend the Morning Service on Christmas Day at Sandringham Church, on Sunday 25th December 2022.”

It is likely Charles and Camilla will be joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children, Princess Royal and her family, the Earl and Countess of Wessex and their children – but it remains to be seen if the disgraced Duke of York will make a public appearance.

Christmas at Sandringham follows a break, when, due to the Covid pandemic, the late Queen spent the festive period at Windsor Castle two years in a row – the first with the Duke of Edinburgh, separated from her wider family in lockdown.

Royal Christmases feature a morning trip to St Mary Magdalene Church, the greeting of well-wishers, and a family lunch with turkey and all the trimmings.

Charles has reportedly pre-record his historic, first Christmas Broadcast as monarch, when he will no doubt reflect on the loss of his mother and her legacy.

Traditionally, members of the royal family sit down to watch the televised address when it airs after lunch, usually at 3pm on December 25.

Sandringham House has been the private home of four generations of British monarchs for more than 160 years, and now belongs to the King.

The late Queen celebrated the eve of her Platinum Jubilee there just seven months before her death.

It was bought in 1862 by the then Prince of Wales, who later became Edward VII, as a private country retreat.

The house was rebuilt in 1870 to ensure it was big enough for his growing family.

George V, the Queen’s grandfather, described the house as “Dear old Sandringham, the place I love better than anywhere else in the world”.

George VI, the Queen’s father, wrote: “I have always been so happy here and I love the place.”

In the aftermath of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, the Prince and Princess of Wales viewed floral tributes left by members of the public at the gates of Sandringham.

The return of a festive train hopes to put families into the Christmas mood as they get the chance to open presents and enjoy mince pies and mulled wine alongside Santa Claus.

The Santa Steam Express, which is in its second year, allows families to explore London in a magical way alongside Santa and his “merry helpers,” with children set to battle the cold winter air with a drink and festive treat given to them on arrival.

Juliet Soley, head of marketing at Steam Dreams Rail Company – which offers the experience, told the PA news agency: “We have Christmas music playing, it’s a lovely atmosphere on board. The adults, depending on which class they’re in, they get mulled wine, mince pies, sausage rolls, coffee and tea.

“We look after everyone and there’s presents for all the children.”

She added that the steam locomotive is the highlight for many passengers, with the majority posing for pictures alongside it to cherish the experience.

With the journey lasting around one hour and 45 minutes, there are plenty of activities on board for families to enjoy.

“We’ve got an activity sheet for the children to do, which has loads of different activities, spot the difference, join the dots to make a picture, Christmas jokes, a wordsearch,” Ms Soley added.

“All the kids get that, we’ve also got a little song sheet on all the tables so the elves go through, they’ve got little bells and we do singalongs so they’ve all got song sheets.”

The Santa Steam Express departed from London Victoria on December 19, offering three departure slots – 8:45am, 11:12am and 13:45pm.

It is also set to welcome aboard passengers again on December 21 at the same times.

Ms. Soley added that the company took 792 passengers over the three trips on December 19, with the same number expected on December 21.

One of the oldest buildings in London, the Tower of London is staffed by Yeoman Warders who are known colloquially as “Beefeaters.”  The two go together like beans on toast and have been since the Tudor Period.  Today, the Tower of London is more a tourist attraction than a fortress, and the Beefeaters serve more as tour guides and caretakers than guards.  To understand more about the history and qualities of both, we’re going to do a brief dive into the relationship between them and how it has evolved over the centuries.

The Tower of London was one of the first buildings constructed after King William I’s conquest in 1066.  He began on it shortly after being crowned in order to hold the City of London in his control and quickly send military aid to surrounding counties in case of rebellion.  The White Tower was completed in 1093 under William’s son, King William II.  The Innermost Ward and the Inner Wards were begun under King Richard I and completed under King Henry III, bringing the Tower of London into a more fashionable royal residence for the 13^th Century.  The final Outer Ward was then built during the reign of King Edward I.  Over time; the tower became less of a residence for the Sovereign and more likely to have “permanent” guests who were prisoners of the Crown.  The most famous of these prior to the Tudor Era were the “Princes in the Tower,” King Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York, who were imprisoned by their uncle King Richard III and then mysteriously disappeared.

It was under the reign of King Henry VII that the Tower of London began to serve more as a prison and a royal armory than a home.  It was also during his reign that Henry formed the Yeoman Warders in 1485 as his personal bodyguards.  The Warders got the nickname “Beefeaters” as they were the only ones permitted to eat beef from the King’s table, though another account by Cosimo III de Medici in 1669 is suggested to be the origin of the name for his account of how the Yeomen were permitted a ration of beef a day.  These elite bodyguards traveled with Henry everywhere, but Henry felt that a contingent of them should also guard the Tower of London, beginning their long association with the fortress.  Yeoman Warders were eventually granted their “undress” uniform which features a dark blue color with red accents and the Royal Cypher at its center.

The Yeoman Warders eventually became the permanent garrison of the Tower of London with the ability to draw recruits from nearby Tower Hamlets if needed for the Tower’s defense.  Over the centuries, their duties trended less toward guarding the Sovereign (a job that was turned over to the Yeomen of the Guard), and they guarded the Tower, including the prisoners, armory, and the Crown Jewels.  Today, the Beefeaters serve primarily as greeters and tour guides at the Tower of London.  One Yeoman Warder also serves as the Tower’s Ravenmaster, looking after the famous birds that inhabit the grounds, a position currently held by retired Staff Sergeant Christopher Skaife.  Perhaps the most important responsibility of the Yeoman Warders is the Ceremony of the Keys, in which the keys for the Tower are presented every night before the Tower of London is closed to visitors. 

All Yeoman Warders are retired military and live with their families in accommodations within the Tower, though many also have homes away from the Tower and are required to have an outside home when they retire.  The Beefeaters also have their own private pub within the Tower, the Yeoman Warders Club, for their members and invited guests.  For centuries Yeoman Warders could only be members of the British Army, Royal Marines, and Royal Air Force, and sailors of the Royal Navy were excluded because they pledged their loyalty to the Admiralty rather than the monarch.  This changed due to a petition from the Governor of the Tower to Queen Elizabeth II in 2009.  The Beefeaters had also been all men until they were joined by Moira Cameron in 2007.  Even though the Beefeaters no longer serve their original purpose, their importance to, and history with, the Tower of London means that the two will be tied together for a very long time.

The King and Queen Consort have chosen a photograph taken at a Highland Gathering for their Christmas card this year.

Buckingham Palace on Sunday released the picture selected for the couple’s first Christmas card since Charles became King.

The image, taken by award-winning photographer Sam Hussein, shows Charles and Camilla smiling at the Braemar Royal Highland Gathering in September.

It captures the King from a side profile, dressed in a tweed suit with a red, green, and beige tie.

Meanwhile, Camilla is wearing a green suit and matching hat with a pheasant motif, and pearl earrings.

The photo was taken on September 3 – just days before the Queen’s death on September 8, when Charles was still the Prince of Wales.

During the event, Charles officially opened a new structure celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee as he joined spectators at The Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park for the annual Highland Games event.

His mother was not in attendance due to her declining health.

Charles cut a heather rope to mark the opening of the Queen Elizabeth Platinum Jubilee Archway.

Crowds from across the globe joined him and the then Duchess of Cornwall to watch competitors take part in events such as the caber toss, hammer throw, and tug-of-war, as well as to celebrate some longstanding Scottish traditions, dance, and music.

Camilla and the Princess Royal were presented with heather posies by 10-year-old Chloe Guy and 12-year-old Cassie Stewart, who are both members of the Braemar Royal Highland Society’s dancing class, before the Games got underway.

Camilla appeared to take a sprig of flowers and put it in her buttonhole, which can be seen in the Christmas card photograph.

Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Ringo Starr were joined by a host of famous faces as they celebrated the UK premiere of a new documentary on Abbey Road Studios.

Directed by Sir Paul’s daughter Mary, If These Walls Could Sing is billed as the “first feature-length documentary” on the world-famous London venue.

The Beatles recorded most of their music at Abbey Road, with their 11th studio album released in 1969 named after the venue.

The Disney original documentary will explore the “breadth, diversity and ingenuity” of the studios across its nine decades.

It will also feature “intimate interviews” revealing how “artists, producers, composers and the dedicated engineers and staff of Abbey Road all found their musical language and community, while vivid archive footage and session tapes give exclusive access to these famously private studios”.

Among the special appearances will be Sir Paul, Sir Ringo, Sir Elton John, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, Liam Gallagher and more.

Sir Paul was joined by his daughter Stella McCartney at the documentary’s premiere on Monday evening as they supported Mary’s project.

Filmmaker and photographer Mary wore a simple black dress with silver beading around the neckline while her fashion designer sister Stella opted for a calf-length tan coat and boots.

Sir Paul, who wore a black long coat over a navy shirt and trousers, was also accompanied by his wife Nancy Shevell, who dressed in a black silk top and shirt paired with jeans.

Sir Ringo, donning a black pinstriped jacket and plain trousers, was also in attendance with his wife Barbara Bach, who wore a red turtle neck jumper and black fitted jacket.

Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm, known as Mel C, singer Sharleen Spiteri and cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason were also among the star-studded guests attending the premiere at the studios in London.

Abbey Road Studios in London has been a recording studio since Sir Edward Elgar conducted a performance there in 1931, and has since welcomed the likes of Radiohead, Amy Winehouse and Adele.

The building, followed by the zebra crossing outside, was given Grade II-listed status in 2010.

If These Walls Could Sing will be available to stream on Disney+ in the UK on January 6 2023.

The King was impressed by a demonstration of “fantastic” blind football when he visited a unique college preparing students for the world of work.

Charles visited the Royal National College for the Blind (RNC) to mark its 150th anniversary and was shown the training given to those enrolled – from learning braille and business skills to massage techniques.

He watched as staff and students played football using a ball that made a noise as it rolled, with instructions shouted out to a defender to help them close down the attacker taking shots at goal.

At the end of the demonstration at the further education college in Hereford, the King said, “it’s fantastic” before adding: “Hearing the ball – it’s amazing.”

In a speech marking his visit and a plaque-unveiling ceremony, Charles said: “But can I just say that in everything I have been shown today, it’s been clear to me that the college is fully committed to the values represented in this motto: education, employment, empowerment.”

He added: “And I think all this has been very apparent in the impressive personal confidence and skills demonstrated by the students, particularly the ones I’ve met, and it is hugely encouraging to see how the ethos of the college provides a real preparation for life.”

During his visit, Charles spoke to students learning Braille from a decades-old machine and also saw a modern version that created the raised dot patterns of the tactile reading and writing system on the machine itself.

At one point, the monarch spotted Billy the guide dog lying under a table as its owner, Orla Rafferty, explained the special equipment she uses in maths.

Visiting the Charles Dickens Museum at Christmas time is a real treat as the place is transformed with Victorian-style decorations.

This year, the Museum has lots of winter events, including a production of A Christmas Carol streamed from inside Charles Dickens’s only surviving London home. There are also spooky ghost stories and ‘A Search for Father Christmas’ for families to enjoy. And the current Oliver Twist exhibition – More! Oliver Twist, Dickens, and Stories of the City – continues throughout the festive period.

Westminster is one of London’s largest and most important boroughs. A city in its own right, it contains the Houses of Parliament, Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, Whitehall, Westminster Abbey, Piccadilly Circus, and many more. With all there is to see here, you might not be thinking about finding a good bookshop, but that’s where we come into the picture. We have found five great bookshops that you can visit within the city to find everything from antique tomes to some travel books that will help you explore the city better. If you think we left out a good store that you’ve visited, let us know in the comments.

DAUNT BOOKS MARYLEBONE

Daunt Books was founded over 30 years ago and has become a top destination for travel books in London. The flagship store is located in Marylebone in a building that had been a bookshop since 1912 and, as such, is one of the best-looking bookshops in the entire city. It has just about everything you could ever need to prepare for a trip (book-wise, at least) with phrasebooks, travel guides, and personal accounts all arranged geographically. If they don’t have a book on a certain corner of the globe, you probably don’t want to go to that place anyway.

BOOKMARKS

Advertising itself as “the socialist bookshop”, Bookmarks is a good place to go for books on political, economic, social studies, and current events. Bookmarks has been in business for over 40 years and sells books for any age from children’s literature to philosophical texts and guides on activism. It also has a number of titles designed to help employees in the workplace to educate them on their rights from disability accommodations to union formation. Whether you agree with the shop’s politics or not, it’s worth visiting for an eye-opening and educational experience.

QUINTO BOOKSHOP

Past Quinto’s green exterior you’ll find one of the best varieties of second-hand and rare books in the whole of the City of Westminster. The store is actually two stores in one, as the rare books of Francis Edwards can be found on the ground floor while Quinto’s secondhand books are located in the basement. Francis Edwards is amongst the most respected names in antiquarian books, having been around since 1855, so you can guarantee that it has some very old and very antique tomes in its collection. Additionally, if there’s something you’re looking to get rid of, Quinto will probably be willing to take it off your hands and give you some extra spending cash.

HATCHARDS

While now owned by Waterstones, Hatchards is quite possibly the oldest bookshop in the United Kingdom. John Hatchard founded it in 1797 and today under Waterstones’ management it has all the selection of a big box store while retaining the charm of an age-old booksellers. Hatchards has a more modern location at St. Pancras Station, but it’s the main store in Piccadilly that you’ll want to visit for its lovely historic interior. Additionally, Hatchards has the Windsor seal of approval with its Royal Warrant to provide books to the British Royal Family.

WATERSTONES

Yes, it is a chain bookshop, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth your time. Quite the opposite, in fact. If you can’t find what you’re looking for at any of our shops mentioned above, there’s a good chance you can get it at Waterstones or have it ordered. Much like Barnes and Nobles in the States, it’s good a friendly, clean atmosphere and unlike any other Waterstones, it has one of the best views out the front doors, from which you can see Westminster Cathedral.

Consider yourself a Whovian? Well get yourself over to east London, where The Who Shop not only sells almost every single Doctor Who themed object you could possible think of (hello, Weeping Angel Oyster card holders), it also has a rather exciting secret tucked away through that Tardis in the corner…

The Who Shop is located at 39-41 Barking Road, E6 1PY. The museum within is open from 10am-4.30pm and entry costs £3 for adults and £2 for children.