Childhood Christmases

[junediamanti]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "pengolodh_sc" 
<pengolodh_sc at y...> wrote:
> ---> > 
> > Christmas proper would start at 3pm with the festival of nine 
> > lessons and carols on the radio from Kings College.  Accompanied 
by 
> > tea and posh biscuits (eg Bahlsen Choco Leibnitz).  
> [snip]
> 
> Last year I acquired a recording of the Festival of Nine Lessons 
and 
> Carols - it is a very beautiful service, and if I manage it, I will 
> try to catch it on BBC this year - I believe BBC transmits it at 
> midnight on Christmas Eve?  In Norway, Christmas begins with bells 
> tolling at 5pm, and at the same time the boys-choir "NRKs Guttekor 
> Sølvguttene" sing Christmas carols in radio and on TV.  The choir 
> stems from two choirs - Sølvguttene (= "The silverboys") and the 
> Boys' Choir of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation NRK, formed 
in 
> 1940 and 1947 respectively, and headed by the same man - Torstein 
> Grythe.  In the 60s they were merged to form the present choir, and 
> Grythe remained its primary conductor until last year - and still 
is 
> the manager and assistant conductor of the choir today, 63 years 
> after the founding - this actually has earned him a place in the 
> Guinness Book of World Records.
> 
June:
Re: the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols. The usual time for its 
transmission is sometime during the afternoon or early evening on BBC 
Radio 4 I think.  I have found it very pleasant to listen to while 
chained to the kitchen sink/cooker - as I frequently spend the 
afternoon/early evening of Christmas Eve in order not to spend 
Christmas day in the same place.  I'm not a religious person but I 
agree it's very evocative and beautiful.

June