I wrote this episode to be part of the second season of 50 Things That Made The Modern

Economy, but my editors the kind of chap who always peaks at his Christmas presents early,

so he insisted we broadcast it last year.

Well, it's Christmas again, and so we've decided to give you it again, this time with some

extra facts about Santa.

50 Things That Made The Modern Economy, with Tim Hartford.

KENTAKI PRISMAS!

A curious ritual takes place each year in Japan.

It's called KENTAKI PRISMASUNIWA KENTAKI, or KENTAKI FOR CHRISTMAS.

The habit of eating Kentucky fried chicken on the 24th of December.

It began as an inspired bit of marketing when KFC noticed in the 1970s that expatriates

who craved Christmas Turkey were turning to fried chicken as the closest available substitute.

It since become a popular Japanese tradition.

There are cues around the block, and customers will pre-order their chicken as early as October.

Christmas, of course, is not a religious holiday in Japan, where a tiny minority of the population

is Christian.

But KENTAKI PRISMASUNIWA KENTAKI demonstrates how easily commercial interests can hijack religious

festivals, from Diwali in India to Passover and Rosh Hashanah in Israel, but most notoriously

Christmas in America.

Why, after all, does Santa Claus wear red and white?

Many people will tell you that the modern Santa is dressed to match the red and white

colours of a can of Coke, and was popularised by Coca-Cola's advertising in the 1930s.

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