There are some Christmas traditions we come back to every year.
Making a gingerbread house (with varying degrees of structural success), wrapping up for a walk to see the Christmas lights, mugs of hot chocolate, but most firmly on the list in our house, Christmas movie nights.
There’s something particularly lovely about shutting the curtains when it’s cold and dark outside, getting everyone into their comfiest clothes and settling down together with a Christmas film and far too many snacks.
And it doesn’t need to be elaborate. In fact, that’s the point.
Make Christmas Movie Night Feel Like an Occasion
You can, of course, just put a film on. But adding a few little touches turns it into something everyone actually looks forward to.
Make some special popcorn, pile up the blankets and cushions, turn the big lights off, add some fairy lights and let everyone choose their treats.
You could even issue tickets before the film starts, particularly fun with younger children.
Our new Christmas Movie Night Packs were made for exactly this sort of thing. Each set is for six people, with individual Christmas snack trays, popcorn boxes, movie tickets and fun little coupons that can be exchanged for popcorn, a drink, chocolate or another snack.
SHOP CHRISTMAS MOVIE NIGHT PACKS
Make the Popcorn Christmassy
Plain popcorn is perfectly good movie-night food, but this is Christmas – so we can do better.
I found three festive popcorn ideas that would be brilliant for a Christmas movie night:
Spiced Christmas Popcorn
If you want something that tastes properly festive without being incredibly sweet, try Jamie Oliver's Spiced Sugar & Christmas Popcorn.
The spiced sugar combines orange and lemon zest with cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. You can make the sugar ahead too, then use some to flavour freshly popped corn when movie night arrives.
Jamie Oliver's Spiced Sugar & Christmas Popcorn recipe
Gingerbread Popcorn
This one sounds very Christmassy.
Tesco's Gingerbread Popcorn coats popcorn in a mixture of brown sugar, black treacle, golden syrup, cinnamon, ginger and mixed spice, before baking it until crisp. It can also be made ahead and stored in an airtight container, which is rather useful if you don't want to be making popcorn as everyone is sitting down.
Tesco Gingerbread Popcorn recipe
The Fun One: Marshmallow & M&M Christmas Popcorn
For something colourful that children can help with, this Christmas Popcorn with M&Ms and Marshmallows is ridiculously easy.
Popcorn is coated in melted marshmallow and butter, scattered with red and green M&Ms and left to cool before breaking it into pieces. It takes around ten minutes to make.
Melanie Cooks Christmas Popcorn recipe
You could make one flavour for everyone, or make a couple and let people fill their own popcorn boxes.
Don't Forget the Hot Chocolate
A Christmas movie night also feels like a very good excuse for proper hot chocolate.
You don't need to turn the kitchen into a hot chocolate bar worthy of Pinterest. Hot chocolate, squirty cream and marshmallows will do very nicely.
If you want to make it a little more special, put out bowls of mini marshmallows, chocolate flakes, crushed candy canes or sprinkles and let everyone make their own.
Pick the Film
And now for possibly the most contentious part of Christmas movie night: what are we watching?
In our house there are films that come out every single Christmas, alongside newer ones that earn themselves a place on the list.
So we've put together some of our favourites – from proper Christmas classics to family films, funny ones and newer festive favourites.
Make a Night of It
The nicest thing about Christmas movie night is that it doesn't really require much planning.
Choose the film. Make something delicious. Turn down the lights. Bring down every blanket in the house. Put the phones away.
If you have children, give them their movie tickets and snack coupons and make a bit of theatre out of choosing their treats before the film starts.
Then settle in.
Because amongst all the shopping, wrapping, parties and general December chaos, sometimes the best Christmas traditions are the really simple ones you do at home together.