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The Christmas table is a great place for dinner, board games and bad cracker jokes.

But it’s also the perfect opportunity to show off your general knowledge and strike up some impressive chit chat with your loved ones. So this Christmas why not level up your table talk with some festive trivia that is sure to knock their seasonal socks off.

���˿��� Bitesize have you covered with four lesser-known Christmas facts.

Queen Charlotte introduced England to the Christmas tree

Perhaps one of the festive season’s most well-loved customs is the Christmas tree. The first known tree was set up at Queen’s Lodge, Windsor, in December 1800 by Queen Charlotte, the German wife of George III - however it was a yew tree, opposed to the fir tree that is considered traditional today.

The tree was potted and decorated with baubles and fruit for a large Christmas party planned by Charlotte for her children and the principal families in Windsor. At the time, Christmas trees were exclusive to those of the upper classes, and particularly popular for children’s gatherings.

The Christmas tree was later popularised during the 19th Century by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, when family pictures of them gathering around the tree were published in Illustrated London News in 1848.

In the years following the publication, the custom of decorating a fir tree spread beyond the Royal circles and into Victorian society. In 1850, Charles Dickens wrote about the Christmas tree, describing it as a ‘pretty German toy’.

There’s a scientific reason behind why some of us hate Brussels sprouts

Brussels sprouts - whether you love them or hate them, it’s inevitable that they will make their way onto someone’s plate on Christmas Day. But scientists think that your feelings about the contentious green vegetable may be determined by your genes.

In 2011 Cornwall College led a study and discovered sprouts contain a chemical which only tastes bitter to people who have a variation of a certain gene. Their research also found that roughly 50% of the world’s population have a mutation on this gene. The other fortunate 50% of people don’t taste the bitterness typically associated with sprouts and tend to like them a lot more than everyone else.

But for any wannabe sprout lovers, all is not lost. Research from the University of Warwick also shows that sprouts may taste better as you get older. As we age we begin to lose taste buds, this can make Brussels more palatable as a consequence.

In the UK an area the equivalent to 3,240 football pitches is dedicated to growing Brussel sprouts, so there’s plenty to go round!

Christmas crackers were used to celebrate major historical occasions

The Christmas cracker has a history dating back over 150 years and was created by London’s East End baker and confectioner Tom Smith in the Victorian era. Inspired by the French bon bon, Tom was looking for a way to sell his sweets in the 1840s. He decided that adding a snapping sound to an item that needs to be pulled apart would be the perfect selling point.

He patented his first cracker device in 1847 and later made the decision to swap out sweets for small gifts and novelties sourced from Europe, America and Japan. The cracker proved a huge success and the business experienced so much growth they were able to employ 2,000 people by the 1890s.

As crackers moved into the 20th Century, they began following topical crazes, providing a visual record of social and political events in British history. As a result, cracker box artwork reference popular trends in culture and technology, such as jazz and the latest motorcars. On top of this, Tom Smith’s company also produced crackers to celebrate major occasions outside of the Christmas season. This included the end of the First World War in 1918 and the 1926 World Tour by Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales.

Slade recorded Merry Xmas Everybody in the height of summer

Merry Xmas Everybody by the British rock band Slade has been a fixture of most UK Christmas playlists for 50 years. The sound of lead vocalist Noddy Holder shouting “It’s CHRIIISTMASSS!” has become a sure sign that the festive season is underway.

When it was first released the song sold over a million copies, making it the band’s best-selling single. But although the record was released on 7 November 1973, it was actually recorded in July 1973 on a hot summers day during Slade’s tour of the US.

In December of that same year the song secured the UK Christmas number one slot, beating Wizzard’s I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday. The song subsequently remained in the charts for nine weeks.

In December 2021, the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) awarded the single a double platinum certification.

This article was published in December 2023