Ring out the olde

The relentless march of the politically correct continues, mowing down in its path all things familiar and comforting to most of us.

The relentless march of the politically correct continues, mowing down in its path all things familiar and comforting to most of us. The latest to fall by the wayside is Christmas that council leaders in Oxford have decreed will henceforth be called Winter Light Festival so as to be more culturally inclusive. Wish you a merry Winter Light Festival doesn’t quite have the same ring as Merry Christmas but this is the sacrifice you must make to bring joy to the world, leaving no one out howsoever minor.

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So this year when you are decking up your environmentally sound, renewable Winter Light Festival tree and boiling up the old Winter Light Festival pudding made with locally sourced ingredients, you will rack your brains on how to warble those familiar Christmas, oops Winter Light Festival carols. How, for example, do you sing ‘On the first day of Christmas, my true love said to me…’, or ‘It’s Christmas time in the city…’? How do we recast the popular story of ‘How the Grinch stole Christmas’? And, as for St Nick or Father Christmas, well, welcome Father Winter Light Festival.

Does all this rob you of the spirit of Yuletide? Yes it does, but the politically correct are determined that there shall be no riding in a one-horse open sleigh if they have anything to do with it. Think of the cruelty to the poor horse clip-clopping through the snow so you can have a good time. Forget it. So let’s skip straight on to New Year and raise a toast with some organic wine.