The 1970s Christmas

EPISODE SYNOPSIS (300 WORDS)

Featuring famous faces of the era, Angela Rippon and Dave Hill from Slade, and a host of experts and historians, we take a nostalgic trip back in time looking at what was under the tree and in our stockings, what we were serving up for Christmas dinner, what was on TV and the Christmas tunes that topped the charts.

From the launch of the Argos catalogue in 1973 which made getting gifts easier, to the battle for Christmas telly ratings which led to Morecambe & Wise defecting from the BBC for rival ITV, to the story behind the smash hit single ‘Merry Christmas Everybody’, we will recall the highlights of the festive season over the decade and reveal the trends that shaped the 1970s Christmas.

Plus, we challenge the Hastings family from Surrey to put away their smart phones and immerse them in Christmas of the 1970s.  They get stuck in making Christmas decorations inspired by Blue Peter, try the hit boardgame Mastermind, tackle a frozen turkey, tuck into Tunis cake and find out how easy it really is to bounce on a Space Hopper. Will they conclude that Christmas was most probably much better back in the good old days?