Christmas...Store Santas

[suzannewozere2]

Who did you go and see and where?
I went to see Uncle Holly in Selfidges in London when I was tiny and apparently screamed the place down.

We used to go to the Father Christmas upstairs in the co-op in Harlow.

There is no where here to take the kids.

[Derekflint]

Re: Christmas...Store Santa's

I remember going to a grotto in a store in Bristol, but in terms of actual store locations I remember seeing a rather big boarded off one in Winkworths in Bridgwater.

Have heard that prices are ridiculous nowadays.

[tulip]

Re: Christmas...Store Santa's

Lewis's in Glasgow.I remember queuing for hours up a back stair to see the big man.Still have a pic somewhere,me in my fur coat and Santa,big cheesy on my face.With the Lewis's one you went through an area that had a display of big mechanical puppets,the theme was usually a pantomime or kids story.I remember one year,it was A Christmas Carol.The pressie was a ladybird book,thats the only one I remember.Co op in Motherwell,Santa was in the basement and it was nowhere near as fancy.Santa was my dad's cousin's father in law.Pressies were really lame pocket money toys,like those plastic make up sets you used to get!

For a decent one here now,you probably still need to go to Glasgow.There is one in the market,no comment!One in Asda,at least one in Hamilton and East Kilbride,one up the Clydeside in a garden centre,apparently,he is good,go on a train to see him,but it costs,maybe on in Strathclyde Park,but nno idea where the best is.Likely Fraser's in Glasgow,I ain't got kids,so I don't know.

tulip

[zofo1961]

seeing father christmas

I remember going to see him in the big dept stores, and youd go into a room and it would be a train or a space ship, and they would make it shake, and the walls would start going backwards, must of been on rollers so it felt like you were moving, you then would go out of a diff door and be at his home, and as a kid you realy belived you had travelled, and out side the stores looked brill, so much effort put in, not like now just strings of lights, im talking of Bristol (uk) the stores would be jones, fairfax house, was it the same where you lived?

[themilkman]

Re: seeing father christmas

1970-74 I grew up near Manchester and we always went to a santas grotto in a department store in Stockport, can't remember what store though.

[Richard1978]

Re: seeing father christmas

1970-74 I grew up near Manchester and we always went to a santas grotto in a department store in Stockport, can't remember what store though.

It might have been the Co-op, later branded Chestergate Stores.

[themilkman]

Re: seeing father christmas

It might have been the Co-op, later branded Chestergate Stores.

Thanks for that Richard, I honestly can't remember myself but I know that I got really excited each year we went.........and it's the only time during the year we ever went to Stockport funnily enough.
Maybe they had a better class of santa than Manchester

[Trickyvee]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

I've posted similar memories elsewhere but for me it was always Fenwick's in Newcastle. They had the same old guy for years and he had a real beard. He didn't really have a grotto. It was always just a seat in a decorated alcove, brightly lit like everywhere else in the store and in view of the rest of the toy department.

It was THE place to go though as it was the biggest and best toy department around so he was the most popular Santa by far, even though you only got a badge. The lack of a grotto didn't bother me. At the time I couldn't get my head around lifts so I thought walking out into the toy department from the lift was exciting enough, like the whole of outside had magically changed while I was inside an unmoving metal box!

One year I remember going to see the Santa in the Co-op in Blyth, my one and only deviation from Fenwick's. it seemed quite grotty and I got a really cheap and nasty fake Barbie. I wasn't impressed.

[battyrat]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

I got dragged along to several stores when I was a wee nipper. I also cried the place down. Nearly every store of merit seemed to have a Santa of their own back then. Reminds me of when we took a friends kid out to see Santa.We went into one store where he saw Santa then went into another store only to bump into another one. My mates kid quickly remarked "Ain't he quick" which sent us into fits of laughter.
I can't remember what I got when I saw Santa as a kid as too young to remember. Possibly wasn't anything to write home about.

[Cooldeepblue]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

I remember my grandma taking me to see the store Santa in somewhere likes Woolies. The next day my other grandma took me to see the one in Boots. I soon caught on that they were two different people and that Santa didn't really exist....hence my childhood came to an end and scepticism was born

[Donald the Great]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

The best Christmas show in Sydney town was at the David Jones department store. It was a veritable yuletide wonderland complete with Santa, his elves, screaming infants/toddlers and so much color and magic.

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

Early to mid 1980s, the top floor of the Co-op department store on Upper Parliament Street in Nottingham - they had a Father Christmas as well. I remember visiting him at least once.

[Richard1978]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

Me & my brother went to the Santa's Grotto at Kendals in Manchester (now House Of Fraser) in the early 1980s.

[George 1978]

Re: Christmas...Store Santas

I have always wondered who exactly played the Father Christmas when they appeared in the stores. I assume that it was some retired former staff member who had some time on his hands and decided to earn a bit of money by doing that.