For many of us dragging the tree down from the attic and putting up a few decorations is about as co-ordinated as our Christmas gets, but this could be the year to push the sleigh out, get out of your comfort zone and create a theme for your festivities.
You could draw on literature for inspiration, choosing, for instance, a Dickensian yule, decking the halls in Victorian splendour and flitting around in stovepipe hats, greatcoats and pinafores like the ghost of Christmas long past.
Classic movies, and hit TV shows can also be a starting point for your theme, be it a Hogwarts Hogmanay with magic tricks and a quick game of quidditch after dinner; or a Bridget Jones jamboree – big knickers optional, ugly Christmas sweater a must.
Here are a few (not too serious) suggest tions for theming your Christmas . . .
Willy Wonka Wonderland
It's the perennial Christmas movie, so why not theme your entire Christmas around the children's classic? You'll need lots of cardboard and coloured paper to create giant lollipops, dolly mixtures and gobstoppers to hang all over the house. Hand out big chocolate bars to all the family – whoever gets the the Golden Ticket gets a special prize. Be careful, though, after a few days of this, you might feel as sick as Augustus Gloop.
What you need: chocolate (lots of it); golden ticket; Oompa Loompa orange face-paint.
The Spy Who Loved Christmas
Why stop at watching old James Bond movies this Christmas? You can be 007 on the 25th, or take your pick from a parade of Bond girls and villains. Set your dinner table like a typical Bond villain's table – you sit at the head with a cat on your lap. As the guests arrive, greet them with "I've been expecting you" in a sinister voice. Is there an annoying cousin or great-aunt at the dinner table? No problem – just pull a lever and they'll disappear into a piranha-infested pool below.
What you need: Aston-Martin (ask Santa); cocktails (shaken not stirred); golden gun.
Nollaig Pheig, ochón, ochón
Here's a theme in homage to the ultimate Irish bean an tí, Peig Sayers. To set the mood, open all the doors and windows and let the wind and sleet howl in. Put on a massive pot of boiled potatoes and a kettle for tea. After dinner get out the poitin and sing songs about the terrible bad luck that does be plaguing us in these times of austerity.
What you need: potatoes; Santa sackcloth; spinning wheel
Breaking Bad Santa
The massively popular US drama series about a chemistry teacher turned drug dealer may have reached its finale, but you can prolong the high by synthesising your own Walter White Christmas. Who knows, we might even see the return of chemistry sets this season. Remember, though, it's a fictional TV show, so the only crystals in evidence should be the ones hanging from your Christmas tree.
What you need: Orange suits; Walt Whitman poetry; subscription to Netflix.
Santa Star Wars
The kids'll love this one. To get into the spirit, try a few Yoda-isms: "A merry Christmas we wish you" or "Christmas every day I wish it could be" or simply, "Humbug, bah!" You better watch out, though: for what is Darth Vader, only Scrooge in a space helmet?
What you need: Darth Vader suit; light sabre; the Force
