Season 3, Episode 12 – The Festive Foreign Film Fans Special Royal English Christmas/New Year’s Triple-Stuffed Podcast Episode Extravaganza

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Wait, don’t think the holidays are over!  They don’t have to be.  It may be the end of the 12 Days of the Christmas, but the Festive Fans want to keep the party going, all year!  We are starting off 2026 with a visit to jolly old England, the granddaddy of the Christmas holiday.  It is so merry, we needed an expanded two-part episode, with special guests, extra movies, and more general celebration.  Just what we need for our post-Christmas blues!

Can we think of an international location more Christmas cozy than Great Britain?  When we think of an idyllic holiday vision of carolers, crackling fires, and snow tapping at the window, what we are picturing is Victorian England.  We wanted to start the new year off here, because we consider it one of the preeminent Christmas places in the world. It is picturesque, with its candlelit churches, village greens, frost-softened mornings, and the pubs glowing with warmth. And while it may be the ideal backdrop to set the holiday mood, it is not without meaning, which lingers well beyond the parties, gifts, and meals.

More importantly, it is Dickens, and his native land, who are mostly responsible for not only adding ghosts to the holiday (which we appreciate!), but also reimaging Christmas as a season of warmth, generosity, and redemption.  Ebenezer Scrooge showed us that moral responsibility to mankind is essential to a just society.  We saw this same spirit reflected again in England through the charitable efforts of Band Aid, when local musicians mobilized global attention in the 1980s to raise millions of dollars to combat world hunger during the Ethiopian famine. Like Scrooge’s experience, the efforts of Band Aid demonstrated how empathy can spark actual change.  These examples show how the English don’t just express the Christmas spirit; they personify it.

Recall how Dickens encouraged readers to carry the spirit of compassion forward beyond the holidays.  He reminds us that generosity is not limited to a single season.  Focusing on these charitable lessons and their real-world impact is a powerful way to begin a new year.  As 2025 transitions into 2026, it provides us a valuable opportunity for personal reflection and motivation.

Starting the new year with a renewed commitment to purpose and social responsibility, sets a hopeful tone and can make the new year feel more purposeful and full of possibility.  So come join the Festive Fans over the next two episodes to celebrate and appreciate how England embodies the true spirit of Christmas through its history, literature, traditions and emphasis on compassion and goodwill.  No other place can deliver Christmas and bring it to life with such timeless charm.

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Season 3, Episode 12 – The Festive Foreign Film Fans Special Royal English Christmas/New Year’s Triple-Stuffed Podcast Episode Extravaganza