It's Christmas time ....

It's Christmas. Be happy!

Yes, it can be difficult. It's not just the indignity of having to buy Simon Cowell's latest XFactor confection for your too-young-to-be-discriminating niece, but having to listen to those perennial bloody Christmas hits. I like Slade but no, I don't wish it could be Xmas every day. Somebody on the BBC must have been taking the proverbial to have scheduled Chris Rea's 'Driving Home this Christmas' on the day we had the biggest, traffic-clogging, flight-stopping, Eurostar-derailing snow storm in recorded history. AC/DC's Highway to Hell would have been somewhat more appropriate. And, sorry, Bowie, but I simply can't hear you and Bing Crosby eulogising about the Little friggin' Drummer Boy one more time... But this year's winner of the 'arrgh no! I'm an atheist, get me out of here..!' competition, and one that sent me personally screaming into the cold winter's night, was Cliff Richard's 'Mistletoe and Wine' snuck in-between 'Come All Ye Faithful' and 'Hark the Herald Angles Sing' at our local school's annual Christmas carol concert this year!

Thank Heaven Gary Glitter is still disgraced ; at least we're spared 'Another Rock 'N' Roll Christmas'.

Oh go on then, I'll admit it; it isn't all 'bah, humbug'. Elvis doing 'It'll be Lonely this Christmas Without You' can still send a Christmas shiver down my spine. And it's literally the one time a year I spin James Brown's very worthy Christmas album.

Christmas morning might bring a bit of cheer, too. I've asked Santa for Keith Richard's autobiography, and an autographed Beatles' album (and if I get the latter, I'll start believing in Santa...).

But, seriously for a moment, let's not forget there are people out there who don't know it's Christmas, and as 'it (still) doesn't snow in Africa' Band Aid's lyric is still as relevant today as it was 26 years ago. Spread a bit of festive cheer where you can.

Finally, we've a special Christmas competition for you with compilation CDs and a copy of Dave Bedford''s excellent 'Liddypool' as prizes. To enter you must post your answer as a comment to the blog. Question 1: what did Dora Bryan want for Christmas in 1963? We'll draw the winners from all entrants received by January 15th.

Happy Christmas.