Journey through 300 years of British Christmas traditions with The Brit Lit Book Club! Discover how Christmas was celebrated in Shakespeare's England, Jane Austen's Regency world, and Charles Dickens' Victorian era.

From the twelve days of Tudor revelry and the Lord of Misrule to the quiet family gatherings of Regency drawing rooms, and finally to the Victorian Christmas that shaped our modern celebrations, explore how Britain's greatest authors lived and wrote about the holiday season.

Learn about wassailing, Yule logs, plum pudding, the invention of Christmas cards, and why the Puritans actually banned Christmas in 1647. Discover how Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" transformed the holiday forever, and what Jane Austen's letters reveal about Regency festivities.

Perfect for Anglophiles, book lovers, history enthusiasts, and anyone curious about the origins of Christmas traditions. Whether you're planning a trip to Stratford-upon-Avon, Chawton House, or Rochester's Dickensian Christmas Festival, this episode brings British literary history to life.

British literature, Christmas history, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Victorian Christmas, Regency era, Tudor England, A Christmas Carol, literary tourism, British traditions, English literature, book club, literary travel

Book Recommendations:

For Shakespeare's Christmas and Tudor/Stuart Celebrations:

📚 Christmas in Shakespeare's England by Liza Picard - Wonderfully readable social history of Elizabethan Christmas celebrations

For Jane Austen's Regency Christmas:

📚 Jane Austen's Christmas by Maria Hubert - Christmas references from Austen's letters and novels

📚 Christmas with Jane Austen - Edited by the Jane Austen Society

📚 What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew by Daniel Pool - Guide to 19th-century English life

For Dickens and Victorian Christmas:

📚 The Man Who Invented Christmas by Les Standiford - The story behind "A Christmas Carol"

📚 Christmas: A Biography by Judith Flanders - How Christmas evolved through history

For Christmas Traditions:

📚 The Battle for Christmas by Stephen Nissenbaum - British traditions and their evolution

For Christmas Literature:

📚 Christmas Stories by Charles Dickens - Beyond "A Christmas Carol"

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