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Charades
An old favourite, Charades is great for family get-togethers, such as a “Charades Party” at Christmas-time. All you need is a stop watch!
Basically, Charades is pantomime: acting out a word or phrase without speaking. For example, “football” could be broken down into “foot” and “ball.” “Softball” might be more interesting.
Charades can be played with any type of word or phrase; but with kids, you may find that movie titles work best. Sleeping Beauty, Lion King… Most kids are familiar with many simple movie titles. And even the youngest can do Pinocchio!
Usually Charades is played by two competing teams in a race against time: each time a player acts out a phrase, a stopwatch is used to track the time, with a maximum of two (or three) minutes for each turn. The team with the least amount of total minutes and seconds wins. With young kids, however, you might want to skip the stopwatch and the competitive element.
Charades: getting started
There are many variations of how to play Charades, but here’s one format:
Divide into teams, move into separate rooms.
Think of a bunch of titles to be acted out, and write each title on a slip of paper.
These slips of paper will be given to the opposite team.
write a player’s name on each slip of paper: make sure that young kids get easy titles to act out.
First, indicate to your team whether you’re going to mime the title of a movie, book, tv show. (make the appropriate signs for these)
Next, indicate how many words are in the title. (Hold up the number of fingers.)
Next, indicate which word you want to start acting: hold up three fingers for “Third Word”, and so on.
IMPORTANT: Act silly!
Buzz
This can be a highly entertaining game especially if the alcohol has been flowing!!
Players take turns counting, beginning with one. Every time a player gets to a number that’s divisible by seven (7, 14, 21) or has a seven in it (17), they must say “Buzz” instead of the number.
If one person forgets to say “Buzz,” everyone has to start over. If this is too hard for younger players, say “Buzz” for every number that’s divisible by five.
If you want a real challenge, try Fuzz Buzz. Say “Fuzz” for every number with a three in it or that’s divisible by three, and “Buzz” for every number with a seven in it or that’s divisible by seven.
Two Minutes of Words
To begin, make sure everyone has a pencil and some paper. Allocate one person as the timekeeper. The timekeeper picks a letter, tells it to everyone else and shouts “Go!” and starts the timer.
Players then write as many words as possible that start with that letter. When a minute is up, the timekeeper says “Stop!” and all the players put down their pencils.
Count one word as 1 point. Words spelt incorrectly are not counted. Now, give everyone one more minute to write a sentence using as many of the words they have already witten down, again counting each use of a word as 1 point.
Tally up the scores from both rounds, the winner is ther person who has the most overall points.
Christmas with all the Strimmings
It took the Holleys five years to prune the evergreen into the perfectly round shape it is today.
The couple achieved the life-like effect by spraying the branch tips with diluted white emulsion paint, using plywood for the leaves and attached toilet ballcocks for the berries. It is proving a much-loved local landmark in the front garden of their home in Yeovil, Somerset.
Grandfather-of-two Roger, 60, said: “We’re so proud of our Christmas pudding. It’s taken a lot of work to make it look this good, but the effort was worth it. “The tree is a real favourite with the neighbours, and the local schoolchildren just love it.
“It’s become something of a local phenomenon among residents, who say it looks good enough to eat.”
The incredible pudding is made up of two 25-year-old conifers which Roger merged together to make a ’single’ tree. Roger and Valerie, both keen gardeners, began pruning the tree into its round shape five years ago. They spent hours every summer intertwining its boughs and trimming its tips to give it the cylindrical shape.
Retired Roger, said he was given the idea to transform it by his granddaughter. “She took one look at the tree and said ‘That looks like a massive Christmas pudding!” he said.
Source: The Telegraph
Christmas tree boss denounces fake versions
The head of Britain’s Christmas tree-growing industry has likened artificial versions to “toilet brushes” and claimed they are damaging to the environment.
Roger Hay, secretary of the British Christmas Tree Growers Association, admitted sales of real trees are likely to fall this year as a result of Britain’s worsening economy.
But he insisted they look better and cause less damage to the environment than “junk food” artificial trees, particularly as they can be recycled into compost.
One in three of Britain’s 25million households – around 8million – bought a real tree last year.
But 25 per cent price rises because of import costs and the pound’s weakness mean real trees cost up to £40 this Christmas, compared with less than £10 for a fake one.
Source: The Telegraph
John Sergeant now heads for the airwaves
John Sergeant has captivated the nation with his flat-footed dance routine and he now hopes to do the same with his voice as he records a Christmas single.
John Sergeant has teamed up with television presenters Adrian Chiles and Christine Bleakley from The One Show to make the charity song. The track, called “Let’s Not Fight This Christmas”, is out on Dec 8 and will battle it out with this year’s X Factor talent show winner in a bid to top the charts this Christmas.
Mr Christmas scales back celebrations.
A man who has celebrated Christmas every day for the last 14 years with a full roast dinner, champagne and presents is scaling back his celebrations because of the credit crunch.
Andy Park, known as Mr Christmas, has munched his way through 117,600 sprouts, quaffed 5,110 bottles of Moet, and sent himself more than 230,000 Christmas cards since his festive fetish began.
But this year the 44-year-old electrician, from Melksham, Wiltshire, is having to make swingeing cuts to keep his unique devotion to Yuletide on the road.
Mr Park, a divorcee, said: “I’ve been through 37 electric ovens and worn out 23 video recorders by watching the Queen’s Speech every day. I’ve also sent myself 235,206 Christmas cards. But these days the postage is so dear I’m having to deliver them myself.
“The credit crunch is getting to me big time and I may even have to cut out the champagne and start singing for my Christmas dinner.
“The lunch with all the trimmings and alcohol is costing in excess of £150 a week, but I’m fighting hard not to let the financial crisis ruin the celebrations.
“I’m not being tight but a few of the little extras are having to go. I’m only having one Christmas tree this year, instead of two, and I’m cutting back on the Christmas lights because of energy bills.
“I used to get a 14lb turkey, now I’m going for a 9lb one. I refuse to compromise on champagne and always have Moet, but now I’m having to make it last two days.”
Every morning since July 14 1994, the father of one has breakfasted on mince pies and sherry, before opening the presents he has bought for himself. Then he eats a full roast turkey lunch and watches the Queen’s Speech on video, his favourite being her “annus horribilis” address.
When he last took stock of his intake in October, Mr Park calculated that he had consumed 5,110 turkeys, 94,080 mince pies, 28,224 roast potatoes, and opened 204,400 Christmas crackers.
Explaining the moment his life changed, Mr Park said: “I’ll never forget the day it started. The sun was shining, but I was just feeling fed up and bored, so I went home and put the decorations up. Suddenly I was happy. I thought, this is fun. So I did it again the next day, and the day after that.
“People do think I’m crackers, but I enjoy treating myself and I’m the only one in the world who does it. Others have tried to copy me, but they can’t last.
Maybe Mr Christmas should have a go on our Happy Christmas Turkey Scoffing Game?
Source: The Telegraph
BBC unveils full Christmas schedule
The Prince of Wales will feature in a special edition of the Antiques Roadshow, Top of the Pops will return and the cast of Blackadder will come together for a one off special to mark its 25th birthday - these are some of the highlights of the BBC’s Christmas schedule that have been unveiled.
The Prince will talk to Fiona Bruce from Dumfries House near Cumnock in East Ayrshire and Blackadder Rides Again will include the first ever in-depth interview with Rowan Atkinson, about his personal experience of being involved in the show.
Bruce Forsyth and Tess Daly will also present a Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special, featuring previous winners Alesha Dixon and Jill Halfpenny, also Kelly Brook, who pulled out last year after the death of her father will return to compete with the remaining contestants of the latest series.
Nigella Lawson will be returning with a five part series ‘Nigella’s Christmas Kitchen’ comprising of three new programmes and Rab C Nesbitt returns in a 45 minute long special.
As well as special holly-encrusted editions of Doctor Who, The Royal Family, EastEnders and Gavin and Stacey, other BBC1 highlights include a Christmas edition of the detective series Jonathan Creek and The 39 Steps, a drama based on the novel by John Buchan, and set in the build up to the First World War, starring Rupert Penry Jones.
Comedy will include the return of Shooting Stars, and Jack Dee will star in a special of Lead Balloon. Among the plethora of feature films due to get a Christmas airing will be the television premier of a new Wallace and Gromit adventure In A Matter of Loaf and Death, and Finding Nemo, Shark Tale, The Chronicles of Narnia – The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Pirates of the Caribbean – Dead Man’s Chest and Starter for Ten.
Jana Bennett, director of BBC Vision, said the BBC had: “Pulled out all the stops this year to ensure a truly wonderful holiday schedule featuring the very best of British talent in a great line-up of exciting seasonal specials”.
She added there was something to appeal to everyone. So while the schedule of BBC1 is unashamedly populist, BBC2 is emphasising the highbrow in its own Christmas offering.
Highlights include the conductor Daniel Barenboim in The New Year’s Day Concert 2008: Live from Vienna and two major religious documentaries In The Truth about Carols, looking at the major traditions and Star of Bethlehem -Behind the Myth, which takes a look at the latest findings of scientists, astronomers and historians as they map the night skies.
Source: The Telegraph
TOTP Christmas Special
Top Of The Pops, that old TV hit parade favourite, is back for two special shows over Christmas and New Year. Presented by Fern Cotton and Reggie the schedule is for one show to go out on Christmas day building up to the Christmas No1 and the second show on New Years eve highlighting the best music of 2008.
Going aganist a BBC embargo to relesase the news Chris Moyles informed the nation on his Radio 1 show this morning. Clearly delighted with the news Chris Moyles also announced that “TOTP is part of Christmas day, I can’t wait to watch it whilst eating my mince pies”
The Jonny Vegas of radio then went on to talk about trifle.
Fern Cotton also interviewed on the Chris Moyles Radio 1 show this morning tipped the XFactor winner to be the Christmas No1.
Wallace and Gromit all set for Christmas
Cartoon favourites Wallace and Gromit will return to BBC One at Christmas with their latest half-hour adventure. A Matter of Loaf and Death sees inventor Wallace and his dog Gromit open a bakery.
It reunites Oscar-winning animator Nick Park with Bob Baker, co-writer of The Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave. “Over the years, the BBC has been incredibly supportive of Wallace and Gromit,” said Park. “This film feels like their homecoming.”
The film - originally entitled Trouble At’ Mill - marks Wallace and Gromit’s first appearance since their 2005 film The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.
Peter Sallis will again provide the voice of Wallace with Coronation Street star Sally Lindsay playing his new love interest Piella Bakewell.
‘Who-doughnut’
“I love making films for the cinema but the production of Chicken Run and Curse of the Were-Rabbit were virtually back to back,” said Park. “Each film took five years to complete,” he continued, saying A Matter of Loaf and Death had been “so much quicker to make.”
BBC One controller Jay Hunt said she was “delighted” to be premiering the latest instalment which she promised would be “unmissable family entertainment”. The film is described as “a classic ‘who-doughnut’ mystery… in the tradition of master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock”.
Source: The BBC
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