Today I went shopping ...

I had a few bits and pieces to get this weekend ... which meant a trip into London!  

First thing on the list was a wedding present for a dear friend of mine ... so we headed to Marylebone High Street and picked up a little something from .....

Here it is - no peeking till the special day! 

Of course, popped into CK and the other lovely shops down the road ... including the Oxfam Book Shop where I picked up a couple of classics for the bargain price of £4.50 and a kitchen shop called Divertimento, where I picked up some heart shaped muffin tins to make Mr Plum some heart shaped cupcakes for Valentines Day!  

Next on the shopping list was new shoes for Mr Plum, so we headed towards (the hell that is) Oxford Street, passing by this lovely shop: It would have been rude not to pop in and have a look! I picked up some red and white gingham ribbon to finish off the bunting for my kitchen!

With all this shopping in the cold, we fancied going somewhere warm for a bite to eat ... one of our favourite pubs was nearby: 

Mmmmm ... I wonder how many WW points are in Veggie Sausage and Mash and a pint of lovely Weissbier? Ha Ha!! 

Onwards towards Oxford Street ... no luck on the shoe front for Mr Plum.  We had a quick look in the John Lewis haberdashery department ... I picked up a little baby knitting kit ... my brother's friend is expecting a baby, so thought that would be a perfect excuse to have a go at knitting some baby stuff! 

Oxford Street was too busy to hang around there for long, so we headed up to Carnaby Street and Kingly Court.  I had a look in "All the Fun of the Fair".  What a lovely shop! Picked up a few pretties for my swap and a crochet needle! 

Phew! With all this shopping, I'm feeling a bit parched! Cup of tea, Mr Plum? We thought we would take advantage of being in town and thought we would head to Fortnum & Masons for a cup of tea and a piece of cake ... the window displays are always so amazing ... 

And then we were on our way home!  Here are all my bits and pieces!  Oh yes, I forgot to mention the two pashminas I bought from one of those stalls on Oxford Street - perfect for a Cath Kidston "Make" project!  What a lovely day ... but looking forward to a day at home tomorrow! 

Did you spot the blue and white polka dot wrapping paper?  I got that for 94p in Tesco! What a bargain! I am planning to use it to cover an old shoe box .... 

I hope that you have all had lovely weekends, too! x

Another Swap!

I really enjoyed taking part in the two swaps I did before Christmas ... so much that I have put my name down for another swap! This one is another Yummy Recipe Swap, and the theme is "Sweethearts".

I need to send

* 1 handmade decorated recipe card
* 1 handmade, sewn, felted, crocheted, or knitted food or handmade or any crafted kitchen item or 1 book , cookbook , fiction, non-fiction [related to theme] [Valentine's Sweethearts]
* 1 ingredient from the recipe
* A note card with your flickr name and name of swap

Better get my thinking cap on!  I'll let you know how it goes!

This will be post 97 ... only 2 more until my 100th post giveaway!!!!!!  Keep reading! x

Joules wish list ...

So yesterday I received an email announcing the Joules Spring/Summer collection! Woohoo! I love Joules clothes ... so had better start saving for a couple of "essentials" ....  

My favourite thing in the catalogue (and probably the only purchase I will make this time as am trying not to fritter every last penny away!) is this lovely dress: 

Perfect for lovely sunny days ....

Marmalade on a Snowy Day!

I know, I know ... I'm starting to sound a bit like the BBC with my "snow theme"! 

I've had a busy day at home today ... it was nice to catch up with a few bits and pieces as we had been away for the weekend.  So once the (boring!) housework was done, I got on with fun stuff (although, I have to admit that all I really wanted to do was go outside and make a snowman - but thought I would look silly on my own!)

So ... I made my bunting ... and some marmalade! I can't wait to have this on my toast! Mmmmm

Lovely Bunting for my Bed

I was inspired by Master Poppins' bunting - I thought I would have a go at making some to decorate my bed with! Bunting is the one thing I will always pick up in a shop and then put down because I know that I could easily make my own, for a fraction of the cost!

I have spent today finishing off my bunting - and am very happy with the results! I am going to make some red bunting for my kitchen ... you can never have too much bunting!

Here's a picture of my bed ...

Snow Day!

I've made every effort to get to work ... but with the entire London rail and bus network being suspended - there's not an awful lot I can do, apart from walk ... and I don't fancy a 3 hour trek in the snow ... on my own ... Mr Plum works locally, so has dressed up like an eskimo and has started his trek to his office - knowing the people he works with, he will be the only one there!

Here's some more pictures of our snowy garden ... some were taken by Mr Plum last night with his posho camera ... the other ones were taken by me, with my little digi camera!

Isn't it ridiculous that a bit of snow can cause London to grind to a complete standstill?

Snow!

I hadn't been keeping an eye on the forecast and had convinced myself that Spring would start on 1st February!  Having spent a cold weekend in Wales, we headed back to London this evening ... by the time we got to Reading there was the odd flurry of snow ... by the time we were in London, it was heavier and settling! I haven't seen "proper" snow for years! 

Typically, our train broke down one stop before our stop - so we got off early and walked home.  It always amazes me how much snow transforms everything ... our busy South London suburb had become a quiet, glistening street with the cars crawling along the road ... no gangstas speeding down the road!

My first blogging award!

Thank you Mary Poppins for my award! It is so touching that people read my blog and consider it worthy of a blogging award! I will send it on to my favourite 8 blogs who will in turn send it on to another 8, including the special piece of text (below) ... this will be a difficult choice as I keep discovering more and more vintagy/crafty/foody blogs!!  

The authors say that blogs who receive this award are exceedingly charming. This blog invests in proximity in space, time and relationships. These kind bloggers aim to find and be new friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandisement. Our hope is that when ribbons of these awards are cut, even more friendships will be propagated. Please give your kind attention to these writers.

It's so hard to choose as I read so many wonderful blogs which are full of inspirational ideas ... but I would like to award my current favourite crafty and foody blogs: 

Mary Poppins

Kitschen Pink

A Thrifty Mrs

Vintage Tea

Lucy Locket Recycled Her Pocket

Lavenderhouse

Domestic Goddess In Training

Green Apples

It's Marmalade Time!

I received an email from Lakeland this morning declaring that

Seville oranges are now briefly in season (until about mid-Feb) ... so time to stock up and make some marmalade!  So, without further ado - I'm off to get myself nine oranges to make a batch of the orange stuff!

Nine posts until my 100th post giveaway! Keep your eye on my blog!

Cup of tea?

I'm so proud of myself!! I managed to knit this fab tea cosy ... my first attempt at something which wasn't a scarf ... I even followed a pattern! 

Afternoon tea with Audrey Hepburn

Hurray! It's the weekend! Always a relief!

Today we ventured into Plumdon to look for some new boots (I spent yesterday sitting at my desk with soggy feet - and had decided enough was enough!)  I didn't manage to find any bargain boots in the shops - but got some lovely wool instead! 

We didn't stay out very long and I popped some scones in the oven while we had some lunch.  So here I am on Saturday afternoon with tea and scones, watching "Paris When It Sizzles".....perfect! 

I've been tagged!

It's always exciting to know that I actually have readers - and have been linked to other blogs so it was doubly exciting to be "tagged" by Greedy Nan!  I can't resist to join in!

Here's what you need to do:

Link to who tags you;
Post the rules;
Write 6 random things about yourself;
Tag 6 people at the end and link to them;
Let each person know;

Here are my six things:

I love Georgian urban history (spa towns and the like)

I wish I had been born in any decade 1900-1940 as I love the fashions of those periods.

I'm vegetarian ... and no, I don't miss bacon sandwiches!

I cry at anything and everything (books, films, tv, music)

I love listening to Radio 2 ... especially "Brunch with Ball", Radcliffe & Maconie and Elaine Paige!

I want a cat!

Here are the six blogs I am tagging:

Domestic Goddess In Training

Mary Poppins

The Adventures of an American Girl in England

Molly Cupcakes

Lavenderhouse

Vintage, Pretty and Shabby

I hope that you will want to take part! Thank you for tagging me, Greedy Nan!

I won't give up my day job! aka "The Bag"

I have just finished my bag! Hurray! I got fed up with trying to follow the complicated non-instructions in "Sew Hip" magazine (and also noticed that it was an 'intermediate' project ... oh well) and just sewed the thing up any old way (!) ... have you noticed the nifty pocket on the front for knitting needles?! 

I used 3 different fabrics - the outside and lining were purchased from ebay and the bottom was some old fabric of my mum's ... I think we used to have curtains  made from this material! 

I have now got it stuffed with all my bits of fabric and wool - it's a bit of an ... unusual shape ....! Needless to say , I won't be giving up work to start a bag making business any time soon!! haha!

This was my first proper go at sewing from a pattern and I suppose that I have to start somewhere! Think I will have a go at something from "Make" next .... should be slightly easier!! 

A Crafty Saturday ...

As it was such a lovely sunny day today (unlike the rain and gales which were forecast, and I suspect, will hit "the south" tonight..) I decided that as Mr Plum was off taking photos and spending time in the "Apple Shop" with a friend from work, I would walk to my nearest haberdashers and get some bits and pieces to get working on!

It was a pleasant 30 minute walk along one of South London's parks ... it felt more like March and the beginning of Spring than mid-January!

I got the Cath Kidston "Make" book for Christmas ... so picked up some felt and threads and will start embellishing and appliqueing (is that even a word?)!  I think that I am addicted to buying fat quarters ... but have decided to make some bunting with the collection of material I have now acquired! 

As I write this, I have given up (!) for the evening, my attempt to follow a "beginners" pattern for a hold all bag to keep all my bits of fabric in ... I think I will have to do a bit of unpicking in the morning, as it has gone slightly wrong! oh well ... 

While we are on the subject of sewing ... here's a gratuitous picture of the lovely red polka dot sewing box which Mr Plum gave me for Christmas!  

I've finished my scarf!

Hurray! I have finally done it .... started and finished a knitting project!!

I have knitted a lovely scarf using lovely pale pink and minty green mohair wool .... I had never had to "cast off" before (as I had never actually finished anything that I had started knitting before!) so found help on youtube!

Hmmm...I might try knitting something else - maybe a tea-cosy? Not sure how difficult these are as I have only ever knitted scarves (or half-scarves!!) .... but as one of my new years resolutions was to make more stuff, rather than just talking about it - I think I need to get started on my next crafty project straight away!!!!!

Mr Plum's New Camera

Mr Plum has been out and about taking photos with his new Digital SLR camera which he picked up at a bargain price in the sales. Here are a couple of my favourite pictures so far ...

Apologies for being quiet on my blog for the last week or so ... I have been busy knitting a scarf, and not doing much else!!!  

Another posting about cakes!

My Sunday tea party went very well .... every single cake, scone and biscuit was eaten up.  I thought I would use this as an excuse to post a picture of my cake stand.  I love it! It was given to me by Mr Plum's Auntie from Oop North....it's always a pleasure to find an excuse to load it up with goodies!  

And, could my Sunday get any better?  A new series of Lark Rise started on BBC1!  

Well, the Christmas decorations are down now ... and the living room is looking bare and bland and ready for redecoration! Me and Mr Plum spent Saturday going around DIY stores and have bought a lovely new fireplace!  Here it is ... Luckily we got a bargain in the January sales!  I can't wait to have it installed (to replace the awful fireplace we inherited from the previous owners of our flat). 

A Sunday Tea Party

Any excuse to drink tea and eat cakes!!  As I was feeling a bit under the weather over New Year, I have invited our friends who hosted us on the 31st round for afternoon tea ... a fine excuse to try out some recipes from "Cherry Cake and Ginger Beer".  

On the menu today, I will be serving scones (with Marco Polo jelly from Paris, and lashings of cream), and "Strike Me Pink" Raspberry cakes (I tested one, just to make sure they had worked .. I'm not sure, so will just have another one ... and maybe another one ....!)

I will also be serving Christmas cake and biscuits that we have left after Christmas ... ready to start with a clean slate tomorrow!

There's only four of us here to tea this afternoon - do you think I have baked enough??! 

New Year Treats

I had a look round the Cath Kidston sale the other day ... and although these weren't reduced, I thought I would treat myself to the pins and threads tins to add to my sewing kit.  

They are lovely!

Happy New Year!

This year I will:

1. Lose weight ... I am a serial Weight Watcher and will be joining the online scheme on Monday 5 Jan
2. Be more crafty ... knitting and sewing
3. Do something useful around the house rather than getting sucked into Soapland!
4. Read all of my "to read" books that I have stacked up before buying new ones (that will be the hardest to keep!)

New Year's Eve

I'm not one for a "big night out" on New Year's Eve.  There is nothing worse than being crammed into a bar with a thousand other people all having A Great Time.  

Since moving to London we have usually spent NYE with the in-laws Oop North, had friends round to us, or gone round to friends.  Last year was a brilliant night as my parents came down to London and we spent the evening having a lovely dinner, walking to St James' Park to watch the fireworks before heading back to the hotel we where we were staying for a glass of champagne before bed.

This year we are going round to some friends who are having a "90's" themed party ... it will be fun as we always have  good time with them!  I'm just a bit concerned about what to wear as the 90's are a decade that I would like to forget as I was a miserable student/goth ... ha ha ha! I bet you can't imagine it at all .... I'm not sure how I have changed so much - maybe it's all just part of growing up and realising how you want to be!

I hope you all have lovely evenings - whatever you decide to do!

Christmas Reading

I got lots of fabulous books for Christmas!

I'm looking forward to making lots of delicious cakes, making Cath Kidston style bits (with my now working sewing machine),  gardening, and relaxing with a good book about the Mitfords ... me and Mr Plum are looking forward to a thriftier 2009! 

Swapping!

Today I received two parcels ... one from Arizona and another from Florida! Very exciting! I had been waiting for these parcels ever since I put together my two packages full of home made goodies, recipes and other bits and pieces at the beginning of December.

This was my parcel from the "Yummy Recipe Swap" ....

And here is my parcel from the "Clasheen Christmas Crafty Swap"

So lovely to receive these parcels full of beautifully crafted bits and pieces ... if you haven't taken part in a swap, and fancy doing one ... I would definitely recommend it! It was great fun ... especially putting together the parcels I sent out!  I think I will look for another swap to do in the New Year!

The Puppini Sisters Christmas Show!

Last night, me and my Mum went to The Puppini Sisters Christmas Show at 

the Royal Festival Hall, on Southbank.  I've seen the Puppini's quite a few times now and never get bored of their show!  I love their music ... the 40's originals, the modern covers with a 40's twist, their clothes, shoes (especially Stephanie's fab red sparkly heels she was wearing last night!).  They did some new songs last night, so I'm hoping that they will release a new album soon! They are great live ... if they are doing a show near you ... go and see them!!

A Little Bit of Mummy Plum's Magic ...

AKA: Kitchen Transformation - Part 3!

Good afternoon!

I hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas ... mine was lovely.  Unfortunately both my parents were inflicted with the lurgy and Mr Plum has started to come down with it too ... so we had a rather laid back affair ... not too much eating (although, I won't be stepping on the scales for a day or three!), just lots of relaxing, watching TV, drinking snowballs and knitting!  I was completely spoilt by everyone ... and got lots of bits and pieces to keep me busy!

We came home yesterday and Mummy Plum had a look at my sewing machine (oh yes ... the saga continues!).  I'm not sure what she did - but I think it had something to do with Mum's being able to sort anything out!  Anyway .... my sewing machine is working!!!! HURRAH!!!!

Which means .... I have finally finished my kitchen cabinet!! Here's a pic:

It needs a bit of tweaking, but doesn't it look great?  Thanks Mum!!  

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Festive greetings to you all!  

I've spent the day cleaning, ironing and doing a few bits in the kitchen (while Mr Plum "worked from home" aka sitting in bed while working on the laptop!) in preparation for the holiday!  I probably won't get a chance to post again before Christmas, so wanted to say "Merry Christmas!!"

Mary Poppins recently wrote about what she would be wearing this Christmas ... I won't be anywhere near as glam as that (I need room for expansion throughout the day! ha ha).  So will probably be wearing my lovely pink "sparkle" PJ's
and then my new favourite Joules dress with fab green beads (Oh! the Joules sale started today ... the only thing I wanted was not available in the colour I wanted it...nevermind!)

Have a lovely Christmas everyone!!

Potatoes and Onions

I finally got around to putting my seed potatoes in a tray and have put them in the greenhouse to "chit"

 

 I also got my onion bulbs delivered over the weekend, so those are also in a tray in the greenhouse!

Limoncello - part 3

Having left my limoncello in a cool, dark place for another 40 days and nights ... today I strained out the lemon zest, decanted into bottles and put into the freezer until we decided to have a tipple!  I did try a small glass ... it is very strong! But lovely and zesty - and, best of all, homemade!

I am planning on making limoncello martinis over Christmas ... a measure of limoncello, topped up with champagne ... mmm mmm, sounds delicious! 

Christmassy Things!

Today I have .... 

Iced my Christmas Cake - I think it looks fab! I hope it tastes as good as it looks!!

Made a batch of Rosemary Shortbread ... yum!

Written my Christmas cards ... but can't face wrapping presents!  I think I will leave that for a day, or two.

Only 4 and a 1/2 working days left before I have a week off for Christmas! Yey!!

Potatoes!!

My seed potatoes arrived today!!

I have three sets of five tubers which need to be kept in a dark, dry place until March/April when it will be warm enough to get my three potato barrels on the go!

I have been sent three different varieties (early, middle and late cropping) ... I can't wait to get started on these!

BHS - vintage splendidness!

Picked up some Cath Kidston and Emma Bridgewater-esq loveliness from BHS and Tesco yesterday ...... 

Lovely new duvet cover 

Pretty wrapping paper

And an Emma Bridgewater style teapot from Tesco!

Today, while sitting in bed listening to Radio 2 ...

I have taken a days leave to recover from singing in two carol concerts this week and prepare for my third tomorrow!  Mr Plum has gone off to work, and I am planning what I am going to do with my day!

So many things to get done ... it's too cold to venture to the gym for a swim, so think I will write Christmas cards, ice the Christmas cake, wrap presents, pop to Plumdon to pick up some parcels ... maybe convince Mr Plum to meet me for lunch then head into town to meet a friend for champagne as it is her birthday! 

But first of all I will have some porridge!

Wonderful Rye!

We had originally planned to go to Berlin with  some friends for Mr Plum's birthday ... but due to other commitments (well, the friends being invited to a wedding oop North!) we had to postpone. I had been looking forward to getting away from London for a day or two, so put on my thinking cap and tried to find an alternative .... 

I have always wanted to visit Rye.  One of my favourite programmes "Mapp and Lucia" was filmed there (and I can't wait to go back to my parents for Christmas so that I can watch their DVD!) and it always sounds like the most enchanting place to visit.  I wasn't disappointed.

Last Friday afternoon we hopped on a train and started our journey down to Rye.  We got there at about 4pm, it was cold and dark ... but we were greeted by the prettiest  streets and Christmas lights.  We stayed at The George Hotel on the High Street, so headed there to drop off our bags before going out for a walk around town.  We wandered along the cobbled (some quite steep) streets and found a lovely pub where I tried a small glass of the local cider.  We then walked on to find a pretty little pub (re-built in the 1600's) with a roaring fire and radio 2 playing in the background.  We stopped there for tea and a drink and then headed back to the hotel.

After a lovely breakfast of poached eggs on toast, we checked out (but left our bags at the hotel) and wandered around Tilling, sorry, I mean Rye.  Our first stop was the Tourist Information Centre where I picked up a map of Tilling with all the main places from the books by E.F Benson.  The Rye Christmas festival was due to start with a procession through the town at 4.30 with drummers, pipers and ..... Father Christmas!

We pottered around for hours and hours, looking around antique shops, craft shops, kitchen shops, antique kitchen craft shops .... stopped for hot chocolate (with cream and marshmallows) and a huge piece of homemade battenburg cake (delish!), had chips for lunch, and walked around some more!  

I bought lots of bits and pieces ... new thicker knitting needles and some lovely wool, Cath Kidston notelets, crafty bits, Mapp & Lucia book (of course!), Christmas presents ..... the shops there are wonderful! Everyone is so friendly ...

We easily spent from 10am until 4pm pottering around ... after a couple of glasses of mulled wine by the fire in The Mermaid Inn, we headed off to find a good spot to watch the procession.

At 4.30 the procession arrived outside The George Hotel and after a visit from Father Christmas in a horse-drawn carriage, the Mayor turned on the lights of the Christmas tree outside the hotel and we watched the fireworks display.  

Here is a clip from "Mapp & Lucia" from Youtube .... this one has lots of Rye (which was used as the location for "Tilling")

At one time, Rye was surrounded on three sides by the sea ... and although the sea receded hundreds of years ago, the town still has a "seaside" feel to it.  I think that next time we visit we will hire a car so that we can drive out and visit the other Cinque ports and Camber Sands.

Sadly, at nearly 6pm we had to start our way back up to London (which, of course, was an absolute nightmare on the trains...).  I would like to live in Rye.

Mummy Plum's Famous Ice-Cream!

After mentioning my Violet Ice-cream yesterday, I couldn't leave it too long before posting the recipe! It's so easy, and you can flavour it with anything (lemon, ginger, strawbs, rasps....I've even made Christmas Pud ice-cream before! That was delish!).

Anyway, while on hols in France earlier this year, I had the most lovely Violet ice-cream (while at Versailles - I like to think that Marie Antoinette would have spent her days eating this wonderful ice-cream!)

Whip 1 pint of cream (whipping or double) to soft peaks

Add 10oz icing sugar (sifted) and vanilla extract, to taste (or any flavour you like!)

Freeze

Eat

So simple, and no faffing around with ice-cream makers!

I added a jar of violet preserve (bought from Lakeland) and slurp of violet syrup and a drop of food colouring.  I haven't tasted it yet, but will update you in due course!

Here are some of my lovely purchases from Rye ...

There are so many gorgeous shops in Rye ... selling all my favourite kind of things!  For a morning I forgot about the fact that I am but a mere civil servant and the fact the the country is in recession (boo!) and treated myself to some Cath Kidston notelets, a star and christmas tree cookie cutter and some lovely blue wool and some thicker knitting needles!

I'm off now as I need to help Mr Plum decorate the Christmas tree (with the new bells we got from Rye ....).  I wish Sundays like this could go on forever, how inconvenient that I have to go to work tomorrow!!

Today I have been mostly ...

• Making truffles ... creme de menthe, amaretto and tia maria (Daddy Plum's recipe)
  
• Making Violet Ice-Cream (Mummy Plum's recipe)
  
• Marzipanning my Christmas Cake - you remember the one I made back in September? It's been regularly fed with sloe gin ... and the odd crumb that fell into my mouth this afternoon tasted delicious!
  
• Cooking a lovely Sunday lunch
  

Am now considering whether to bake a chocolate cake, glue the oil cloth curtains, start some knitting with my lovely new wool or watch Home Alone!

Okay ... curtains it is! (only because it is on my "one more job to do before I can have a G&T blackboard!!)  

(Recipes to follow in next couple of days!)

It's Christmastime!

One of Mr Plum's many varied talents includes tracking down random and ancient Christmas tunes and putting them on a downloading website.  He is currently working on his 2008 Christmassy playlist - and he has let me include a link to last years playlist on my blog! 

You don't need a password or anything complicated - just copy and paste the link below for some festive fun!  My favourite song is "I know what you want for Christmas".

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=APHHSS7R

Here is a list of all 14 Christmas songs (with Mr Plum's notes), I hope you enjoy them!  Merry Christmas!!

1) Twas the Night Before the Goose got Fat - DJ Riko (Jon Kennedy vs Louis Armstrong)
A great start and a great mash-up by DJ Riko. This so happens to be Louis Armstrong's last recording – and what a great one it is. Louis Armstrong RIP.

2) Christmas Time (Don't Let The Bells End) – The Darkness
What a fantastically cheesy tune – this is what Christmas music is about! Whatever happened to The Darkness?

3) Santa Claus Is Coming to Town - Frank Sinatra, Cyndi Lauper
You can't have a Christmas record without a bit of Frank. Here he is in classic big band fashion with Cyndi Lauper – fantastic!

4) Do You Know How Christmas Trees Are Grown? - Nina
This is from the James Bond film with George Lazenby – On Her Majesty's Secret Service. It was written by Hal David, orchestrated by John Barry and sung beautifully by Nina. Shame it's so bad!

5) Christmas in the Stars – Star Wars Christmas Album
Another film tie in – this time found on the net. C3P0 singing to R2 D2 and Chewbacca. This album has gained cult status because it's so tacky. Surely is – but isn't that what it's all about?

6) Twelve Days Of Christmas – John Denver & The Muppets
My wife has fond memories of this album. She played this cut to me last year and I've been hooked since! The Muppets! Fantastic!

7) Happy Christmas (War Is Over) – Neil Diamond
I love Neil Diamond – not quite sure why. Here he is killing a Lennon classic. Enjoy!

8) Merry Xmas Everybody – Slade
Let's face it, no Christmas album is complete without this Slade classic. Greatest Christmas song ever? It's right up there!

9) Saviour's Day – Cliff Richard
Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without a bit of Cliff.

10) I Know What You Want For Christmas (But I Don't Know How to Wrap It) - Kay Martin & Her Body Guards
I found this on the internet. Delightfully risque for it's time. Full of dodgy innuendo and sung by a pin-up. I reckon this might be the best track on this record!

11) Back Door Santa - B.B. King & John Popper
Sticking with the innuendo theme, here's B.B. King delivering blues in the only way B. B. King can. Fantastic stuff!

12) Peace On Earth / Little Drummer Boy – David Bowie & Bing Crosby
A Christmas classic and so bizarre. I suspect Bing Crosby was doing what his people told him and Bowie, well, Bowie probably didn't have a clue what he was doing.

13) Jingle Bells - Julie Andrews & Andre Previn
An exquisite rendition of a popular classic. Let's face it, no one is going to mess with Dame Julie – and here she seems to be teaching us all how to sing properly.

14) Oichie Chiun (Silent Night) – Enya
I heard this for the first time in the Oxford Street HMV last year. It's beautiful. It's a nice way to conclude this record.