Christmas stamps, as featured on this year’s COUNTRY LIFE Advent calendar cover, are a cherished annual event– but how did they become one? Emma Hughes investigates

I’VE had an idea!” Amanda charged into the living room, shiny brown ponytail swinging. “Oh, no.” Dylan, his bearlike frame packed into an armchair, slid down an inch. Ignoring his reaction, she pointe

The myth Father Christmas delivers your children’s presents. The “truth” If he’s leaving gifts, he isn’t Father Christmas. That’s not what FC does. The first personification of Christmas that we know

You might be surprised to learn that there are more ghost sightings on Christmas Eve than there are at Halloween, so what better time for a ghost hunt? The festive season has always been favoured by l

As I look ahead to Christmas this year, I feel that familiar cocktail of excitement and mild dread. The children are growing up fast now – and who knows how many more years of ‘magic’ we have left? La

From gleaming presents to inebriating parties, discover five artists’ interpretations of the festive season