Nothing but the best will do, and the richer the fare the better. Many of you will probably follow the turkey and trimmings with some clean, palate-cleansing fruit.
Folk have always needed a bit of cheer during the long nights of winter. Apart from in Scotland, where we celebrate Hogmanay, European celebrations have traditionally taken place on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Before American influence made turkey fashionable the favourite dish in the British Isles was roast boar's head. This dates back to the Celts, who sacrificed the boar to the fertility goddess. The boar was dressed with rosemary to represent the return of summer and an apple in its mouth symbolised the sun.
