Advent Calendar 2022: Day 1 🎅

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As regular readers may recall, and as I have reminded you all a few times recently, 1 December sees the beginning of my annual Advent Calendar. This runs from today every day up to and including Christmas Day, and includes some music, maybe some other videos, and an image of the day. These images usually start in poor taste and then get worse, but I’ll try not to go too far with them! I have always posted Christmas songs, initially on Twitter and then on the rather neglected Facebook page for my blog, and I also used to share an image each day on Instagram. I then had the brainwave of combining these into blog posts, and this is now the third year in this format. Previous years have been a lot of fun, and I hope this will be too. A word of warning, though: if your idea of Christmas music is wall to wall Screeching Mariah, then I’m afraid you’re in the wrong place 🤣

As things to start the party go, I can’t think of a better one than this:

Bryan Adams has given us several Christmas songs over the years, and I have played him before (and may well do so again!). This one is brand new, having been released on 31 October, and it is the ideal opener for this year’s extravaganza. A catchy tune, loads of kids having fun, and a couple of real “aah” moments: what’s not to love?

By way of contrast, today’s other tune is a long time favourite of mine, and is one which I play every year. I make no apologies for that, as it is a great song and the video is an absolute riot:

Hopefully your Christmas, when it comes, will be just as enjoyable as that, even if your family isn’t as full of ‘characters’ as theirs.

One of the bonus features that I have added into this series has been the occasional Christmas advert. I started doing this after becoming a big fan of the amazing ads created by Hafod Hardware, a shop in the mid-Wales town of Rhayader. These came to national attention when they went viral, and there were four in all, running from 2017 to 2020. Sadly, they didn’t do one last year, nor have they made one for this year. But a little bit of scouring around YouTube has allowed me to find something of a similar nature. There are quite a few who have jumped onto this bandwagon, along with all the usual suspects from big business, and I will probably play you several over the duration. Here’s one I rather like:

There must be something about Wales, as that is where you’ll find The Old Railway Line Garden Centre and Farm Shop. They are based in Powys, east Wales, and this is (I think) their third Christmas ad. They have clearly borrowed Hafod’s template, but it is great to see them doing it, and proving that you don’t need the megabucks budgets that some spend on their ads to make something charming and fun. Having said that, though, some of the well-known names will be appearing here too, as they have also entertained me with what I’ve seen on tv so far this season. Yes, it may only be 1 December, but the ads have been running for weeks!

That’s just about it for Day 1. As always, though, I’ll leave you with my image of the day:

I told you they were tasteful, didn’t I? See you again tomorrow 🎄

43 thoughts on “Advent Calendar 2022: Day 1 🎅”

  1. Fun collection here! As usual, I’m late to the party, but trying to catch up, as I promised myself I would visit each of your advent calendar postings! I hadn’t heard either of the two songs, and while I’m somewhat familiar with Bryan Adams, I never heard of Dropkick Murphys … well, it was a different perspective on the holiday and really one that is likely aligned with many people! Loved the ‘toon! Thanks, Clive, for some pre-holiday fun!

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    • Fun was what I was hoping for with these two. I didn’t think you’d know either: the Bryan Adams one is a new video for a song released last month, and the Dropkicks aren’t likely to have been on your radar. They video is a hoot, and is always enjoyed. Glad you enjoyed the cartoon too – they’ll probably become less tasteful as the month progresses 😉

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  4. I haven’t heard much from Bryan Adams lately, so I’m happy to learn he’s still making music. I played So Far So Good into the ground back in the day. Of course, I remember Dropkick Murphys from last year. Two winners to start off December.

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    • Glad you liked them, Pete. Bryan Adams had a new album earlier this year, ‘So Happy It Hurts.’ If you haven’t seen it I can recommend the video for the title track, which stars…. his Mum!

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  5. not a bad song to start with, but it’s tough to compete with the Dropkick Murphys’ song – one of my favorite holiday videos.

    and I am a big fan of the Christmas adverts from the UK. I didn’t think this one came close to Hafod’s, but still pleasant to watch…

    looking forward to your next installment…

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    • I like Bryan Adams too. I get him in my YouTube recommendations and saved this one to play today. Some Christmas ads are better than others, but I’ll be sparing you the crap ones.

      You should see some of the cartoons I’ll probably chicken out from posting 🤣

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  8. I sent that comment too early, sorry. I wanted to say that I did not know that Bryan Adams has another Christmas song, so cute. And how poignant is that story of the bear… very lovely, Clive.

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  13. I see how “The Season’s Upon Us” can be favorite. As for advent Calendars, not sure if they are popular in the UK, but craft beer advent calendars are a big hit here (how can you go wrong with a different beer a day?)

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  14. A great start, Clive…I love Dropkick Murphys and remember them from last year…Bryan Adams one will probably grow on me and the bear advert is cute looking forward to tomorrow’s post …I love the Christmas Songs xx

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  16. Dropkick Murphys. I’m a Murphy, and you’re riot…this video and song are a riot! Thanks for giving me a laugh at first rising this morning!! My new favorite Christmas song!

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