TEN THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT CHRISTMAS

While you're busy wrapping gifts and preparing to feast with family and friends, TIME brings you these bizarre Christmas facts to ponder.

A Very Merry Un-Birthday?

Contrary to popular belief, the Bible doesn't actually mention a specific date for Jesus' birth. In fact, most historians believe he was probably born in the spring, hence the Bible's description of shepherds herding animals. But in the 4th century, when the Catholic Church decided to recognize Jesus' birth as an official holiday, Pope Julius I chose December 25 for the Feast of the Nativity. That the date happened to coincide with the pagan festival known as Saturnalia must have been pure coincidence.



War on Christmas

Five months into the first World War, troops along the Western front took a Christmas Eve break from fighting to sing carols to one another across the battlefield. The following morning, German soldiers emerged from the trenches and began to approach Allied troops while calling out "Merry Christmas" in English. Luckily, it wasn't a trick; dozens of British fighters came out to greet them and shake hands, some even exchanging cigarettes as gifts. Later dubbed the Christmas Truce of 1914, it was one of the last examples of wartime chivalry.

Christmas in the Colonies

From 1659 to 1681, showcasing one's holiday spirit in Boston could cost you a fine of as much as five shillings. That's right — Christmas used to be illegal. It's somewhat surprising, then, that the same puritanical minds also created the first American batch of eggnog at Captain John Smith's 1607 Jamestown settlement. (The word nog comes from the word grog; that is, any drink made with rum.) Christmas was so inconsequential in early America that after the Revolutionary War, Congress didn't even bother taking the day off to celebrate the holiday, deciding instead to hold its first session on Christmas Day, 1789. It took almost a century for Congress to proclaim it a federal holiday.

Xmas Lit 101

The author best known for creating the Headless Horseman also created the iconic image of Santa flying in a sleigh. In his 1819 series of short stories The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, New York native Washington Irving described a dream in which St. Nicholas soared across the sky in a weightless wagon. The stories became so popular, they spawned a Christmas revival of sorts in the States, and even Charles Dickens is said to have credited Irving's work for inspiring his classic holiday tale A Christmas Carol.

What Advertising Hath Wrought

Like the Energizer Bunny, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer got his start as an advertising gimmick. A copywriter named Robert L. May first created the merry misfit in 1939 to lure shoppers into the Montgomery Ward department store. Frosty the Snowman and his famous corncob pipe couldn't escape the clutches of the advertising industry either; a whiskeymaker in 1890 used Frosty's likeness to showcase an entirely different kind of holiday cheer. Once Prohibition ended, the chain-smoking snowman quickly became the go-to guy for alcohol ads, appearing in posters for Miller beer, Jack Daniel's, Ballantine ale, Rheingold beer, Schlitz beer, Schenley, Oretel's lager beer, Chivas Regal scotch, Fort Pitt pale ale, Mount Whitney beer and Four Roses.

NASA's Christmas Sighting

In 1965 two astronauts on their way back to orbit spotted something in space they couldn't identify. Frantic, they radioed Mission Control. After several minutes of tense silence, engineers at Cape Canaveral began hearing the faint jingle of sleigh bells followed by a harmonica rendition of "Jingle Bells" ... played by none other than the two "frantic" astronauts. The men later donated the harmonica and bells to the National Museum of Space & Aeronautics in Washington, where they now sit on display.

Kiss Me; I'm Celtic

According to Celtic and Teutonic legend, mistletoe is magical — it can heal wounds, increase fertility, bring good luck and ward off evil spirits. The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe didn't begin until the Victorian era, a surprising origin given the stuffy and sexually repressive behavior of the time. Actually, it's not very surprising at all.

O Tannenbaum!

Even before the arrival of Christianity, Germans decorated evergreen trees to brighten the dark, gloomy days of the winter solstice. The first "Christmas trees" appeared in Strasbourg in the 17th century and spread to Pennsylvania in the 1820s with the arrival of German immigrants. When Queen Victoria married Germany's Prince Albert in 1840, he brought the tradition to England. Eight years later, the first American newspaper ran a picture of the royal Christmas tree, and Americans outside Pennsylvania quickly followed suit.

Away in a Manger

Since the Great Depression, the Rockettes have shared Radio City Music Hall with live farm animals — from camels to donkeys to sheep — to stage a live nativity scene for its annual "Christmas Spectacular." But the world saw its first living nativity in 1224, when St. Francis of Assisi re-created the birth of Jesus to explain the holiday to his followers. During that first display, the manger was also used as an altar for Christmas Mass.

Feliz Navidad Around the World

Christmas traditions vary from culture to culture. Finns often visit saunas on Christmas Eve, while Portuguese revelers hold a feast on Christmas Day for the living and the dead (extra places are set for the souls of the deceased). In Greece, some believe that goblins called kallikantzeri run wild during the 12 days of Christmas, and most Greeks don't exchange presents until Jan. 1, St. Basil's Day. Thanks to their geographic location, most Australians and New Zealanders enjoy Christmas on the beach or at barbecues. Spain, meanwhile, hosts the world's largest lottery.

Signals Media Arts Centre has been the centre for independent filmmaking and media education in Essex for 25 years and is involved in a variety of community projects.

Visit our website www.signals.org.uk for more details.

Despicable me 2- Three amazing facts

As Despicable Me 2 just had its premiere in Colchester we thought to bring to your attention some interesting facts about this American 3D computer-animated comedy film. 

1. Al Pacino

       In February 2012, it was reported that Al Pacino had joined the cast to voice the villain, Eduardo.

      On May 3, 2013, just a month before the film's premiere, it was announced that Al Pacino had left the film over creative differences about how his character should come to life. At the time of his departure, Pacino's character had been already fully voiced and animated. Chris Renaud, co-director of the film, commented on Pacino's departure: "So we don't want an unhappy actor, and we want something that is well-realized on all sides. If you don't see eye to eye, sometimes it's easier to (part company) and move on from there." Benjamin Bratt, who had already been considered before Pacino, stepped in to voice Eduardo. 

       Chris Meledandri, producer of the film, admitted that he was not "aware of any of the major animated films of the last 15 years that has brought an actor in at such a late stage." Due to the finished animation, Bratt had to match his timing exactly to the character's mouth movement. Initially, during his five-day recording, he tried to imitate Pacino's voice, but found it impossible, saying "no one can out-Al Pacino Al Pacino." He ended up only using Pacino as an inspiration, and resolved to go with his own interpretation of the character. His work was commended by Variety, saying: "You'd never guess he wasn't the filmmakers' first choice."

2. Kristen Wiig

         Kristen Wiig, on the other hand, who voiced Miss Hattie in the original film, voices Lucy Wilde, an agent of the Anti-Villain League (AVL) who recruits Gru to track and take down a tough, Mexican villain named Eduardo.

3.Despicablimp

      A blimp disguised as a Minion, named "Despicablimp," has been touring the United States since March 2013 in its six-month tour to promote the film's release. As one of the largest airships in the world, measuring 165 feet (50 m) in length, 55 feet (17 m) in height, and weighting 8,000 pounds (3.6 t), it will cross the country three times during its 20,000 miles (32,000 km) long tour, visiting hundreds of events, including the film's premiere in Hollywood. 

      The blimp, an A-150 model of American Blimp Corporation, can be tracked in real-time via GPS at the Despicablimp Command Center website, which also allows fans to post photos of the sightings, and compete for various prizes, including for a ride with the blimp.

If you’ve been to one of our Claymation workshops before, Claymation 2 workshop which is on 12th of August will take your animation skills to the next step. In pairs or individually you’ll be given your own MacBook and camera to work on so you can create your own short film from start to finish.

You can book online through our website (www.signals.org.uk booking fee applies) or you can save the booking fee and call Signals direct on 01206 560255.