Reader Roy Cartwright, of Covingham, contacted the Adver with his list of 50 Christmas-related facts.

He says: "With Christmas fast approaching I remembered that my niece in America asked me some years ago what I knew about Christmas which I had to admit was very little, so I did a bit of research and came up with the following information below some of which I cannot guarantee is correct..." 

We are bringing you 10 of Roy's facts a day...

1: In Victorian times mince pies really did have minced meat in them.

2: Putting fruit into stockings started in France in the 12th century when nuns took food around to the poor in their stockings.

3: Carols were not sung in Churches until St Francis of Assisi introduced it in the 13th century.

4: Carols began as an old English custom of wassailing (toasting your neighbours with good health and a long life). They also wassailed fruit trees believing that it would bring a better harvest.

5: Hanging your stocking out for Santa came from Dutch children who would leave their clogs full of food outside their room for St Nicholas’s donkeys and he would leave them something in return.

6: There is no reference to angels singing anywhere in the Bible so (Hark the Herald Angels Sing is not actually correct).

7: The word Noel is French (les bonnes nouvelles) meaning the good news.

8: Xmas is from Greece ('X' is the Greek abbreviation for Christ, Mass is the service)

9: The world's tallest Christmas tree was erected in Washington in 1950, and was 221 ft tall.

10: Many theologians estimate that Jesus was born in September between 6BC and 30 AD.