The true story of Father Christmas - The Saturday Story
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 20 December 2025
⏱️ 16 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It's the weekend before Christmas and millions of people around the world are eagerly awaiting the arrival of Father Christmas. For many, it's feels like he's always been there, but where exactly did he come from? Turns out, it's been a pretty wild ride for Old Saint Nick, one that involves prostitution in the 3rd century, pagan winter feasting, and even the creation of New York City. And what if it transpires the loveable, jolly figure we know today, was formally a thin, wayward drunk? It's the origin story you thought you knew, one that spans thousands of years of history, and countless reinventions. How well do we really know St. Nicholas of Myra, Sinterklaas or Kris Kringle?
Written by: Waldemar Januszczak, Chief art critic of The Sunday Times.
Read by: Shabnam Grewal.
Producer: Dave Creasey.
Photo: Getty
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | From The Times and the Sunday Times, this is the story on Saturday. |
| 0:06.1 | I'm Manvine Rana. |
| 0:11.9 | It's the weekend before Christmas, and we all know what that means. |
| 0:18.6 | Kids everywhere, and let's face it, they're not alone, are compiling |
| 0:22.6 | lengthy lists for Santa. Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas! But where does the idea of Father |
| 0:34.6 | Christmas come from? What is the origin story of this red-robed superhero? |
| 0:40.7 | And how does it involve a Turkish bishop, a wayward English merrymaker, and a Republican icon of the American Civil War? |
| 0:51.2 | The story today, the true story of Father Christmas. |
| 1:10.6 | The true story of Father Christmas. The true story of Father Christmas. If I'm in Venice at Christmas, there's a church I always visit. |
| 1:50.6 | It keeps the celebrations in perspective. |
| 1:54.8 | The church is the Basilica Santa Maria Gloriosa de Frare, although the locals just call it the frare. |
| 2:03.0 | Inside is a Titian masterpiece, the stupendous altarpiece of the assumption, as well as his |
| 2:10.8 | enormous tomb and a poignant John the Baptist carved by the great Donatello. |
| 2:16.6 | But I hurry past all of these and head for the sacristy and the small triptych by Bellini. |
| 2:23.3 | Triptics are altarpieces with three parts. |
| 2:27.3 | With this one the trick is to ignore the big bit in the middle with a fabulous virgin and child serenaded by angels |
| 2:33.3 | and to look instead at the two old boys with beards on the left. |
| 2:38.7 | The one on the right is St Peter, Christ's beloved disciple and the first pope, |
| 2:43.3 | ignore him. |
| 2:45.0 | Focus instead on the other grey beard, |
| 2:48.1 | because that is Father Christmas. |
| 2:54.6 | Music grey beard because that is Father Christmas. Or Santa Claus or Chris Cringle or whatever else your favourite name might be for the chimney haunting reindeer riding gift giver of the Yule festivities. |
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