Merry Christmas from Monk Debunks

A short Part 3 to "they're not cancelling Christmas"

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!

Photo by Frames For Your Heart on Unsplash

Life got in the way of writing this final “They’re not cancelling Christmas” piece, because, quite frankly, the fact that Christmas hasn’t been cancelled meant I’ve had a lot on!!

Here are just a couple of quick-fire debunks in case you need them…

These are mainly online-only rage bait, but as more people get their information online, you might still come across them during Christmas dinner arguments, so keep this article to hand, alongside Part One and Part Two.

Quick Debunks

The Trafalgar Square tree looks awful because Sadiq Khan hates Christmas!

Every year, I see right-wing commentators complaining about the tree in Trafalgar Square for being ‘scrawny’ and for the lights being boring. And every year, they have the history explained to them, before putting out the same complaint the following year…

Image taken from Westminster.gov.uk

As a thank you for taking in the King of Norway and the government-in-exile during the German occupation in 1940, Oslo has donated a Christmas tree to London every year since 1947. It is always a Norwegian Spruce, selected 5-10 years ahead of time, around 20 meters high and 60 -80 years old, and transported with care to London. It is then decorated in the traditional Norwegian style with vertical strings of lights.

The style of tree and the manner in which it is decorated have absolutely nothing to do with Sadiq Khan!

London’s Christmas lights don’t include the word Christmas

Yes, Nigel Farage actually complained on GB News that the Christmas lights up in Oxford Street don’t have the word ‘Christmas’ incorporated into the lights. The discussion talked about how this meant Sadiq Khan wasn’t celebrating Christmas properly, and how Christians around the world were being persecuted…

I hope I don’t need to explain that Christmas lights don’t need to actually include the word ‘Christmas’ for them to be Christmas lights!

You’re not allowed to say Merry Christmas

This originated from the USA where the idea of saying ‘Happy Holidays’ began many decades ago, to encompass Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Christmas, Midwinter and New Year. It was considered more inclusive, which obviously upset many on the Right. They were, of course, free to continue saying Merry Christmas if they chose to.

On the 1st December this year, the official White House Social media accounts posted an image of Trump in front of a Christmas tree with the words:

“We’re saying MERRY CHRISTMAS again!” - President Donald J. Trump

It’s worth noting that he announced the same thing in a speech in 2017 as well, which says it all really

I’m going to leave it there as I am writing this on Christmas morning, as I wait for my grown-up children to wake up and open stockings!

Have a wonderful Christmas to everyone who celebrates, and a well-earned rest to everyone who can.

Good luck to those who have tricky relatives at this time of year. Remember, it is not your job to change their minds or win the argument (no matter how much you want to!). A gentle push back with the facts, planting some seeds of doubt on what they see online, helping those who aren’t sure what to believe - that’s how we start to chip away in real life.

Starting with “Oh yes, I saw that online too, but then found out it wasn’t true” is non-confrontational and brings them along with you.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me this year. Here’s to growing this community in 2026!

I have a Christmas offer on a paid subscription if that’s something you’ve thought about doing. 20% off for the lifetime of your subscription, making it just £4 per month or £40 per year.

Coffees (or mulled wine😜) are always welcome too, to support me with this work

Photo by Clint Patterson on Unsplash