Christmas Links #22

'The Scrooge guy called us all mutants': when Christmas grottos go wrong:
"Disappointed parents in the UK and Australia decry traffic jams and scary decorations."

The Queen’s Gambit (2020):
[Editor's Note: The Art of the Title interviews Saskia Marka and David Whyte, title designer and animators for credits sequence.]

BBC Radio2 listeners vote It's A Wonderful Life their favourite Christmas movie of all time:
"It’s a Wonderful Life has been voted by Radio 2 listeners to be their favourite Christmas film of all time. A long list of 25 classics to choose from was created by the network’s resident movie critic, James King."

Bob And Robin's Excellent Holiday Adventure:
"All Songs Considered hosts Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton set out on a road trip to find the true spirit of the holiday season. Along the way they stop at the Silent Night Motel, where they meet Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips, St. Vincent (Annie Clark), Josh Ritter and more."

Can We Talk About the Mom in ‘A Christmas Story’?
"The woman hasn’t had a hot meal in 15 years and she’s always cooped up at home. 2020 is the year to give this character from a classic holiday movie her due."

The best pictures of the Royal Family at Christmas:
"Those royals sure do love Christmas. From the festive-themed engagements in the run-up, to the annual church service at Sandringham, their typical seasonal schedule is packed full of family festive traditions."

Winter solstice 2020: The shortest day is long on ancient pagan traditions:
"For six months, the days have grown shorter and the nights have grown longer in the Northern Hemisphere. But that's about to reverse itself."

How Well Do You Know The Lyrics To Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’?
"to see a whale with legs"

Wild in the City: Twelve days of Christmas for birdwatchers:
"No matter how hard you try, you’ll struggle to see a partridge in a pear tree in London this Christmas. Not least because partridges tend to stick to the ground, even flying low when startled."

Physics student makes world's smallest Christmas tree:
"Every year, people all over the world try to make the biggest artificial Christmas tree, like the Gubbio Christmas Tree, formed by thousands of lights on the slopes of Mount Ingino, or the illumination of the 372-meter high transmission mast at Lopik in The Netherlands."