How has Christmas changed since the year man landed on the moon?

Christmas is “a little bit lonelier and less joyous or magical” than it was 55 years ago, according to new research.

One in nine people in the UK have said they will spend Christmas alone this year, more than double the share of people seen 55 years ago, when one in 20 people spent Christmas alone.

The study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London compares behaviours over the festive period in 2024 to those in 1969, based on two nationally representative surveys of adults over the age of 21.

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It found that the number of people aged 65 and over will spend Christmas alone remains the same over this period, at 15%, but it has risen among all other age groups.

The biggest increase has been seen in young people aged 21 to 34, of whom one in 11 will be alone this Christmas. That is up from one in 100 in 1969.

Eight in 10 people today say they enjoy Christmas, which is down slightly from 55 years ago, when 86% of people enjoyed Christmas.

People are less likely to encourage their children to believe in Santa – with six in 10 parents (62%) today doing so, compared with three in four (75%) in 1969.

This change was particularly driven by older age groups – with the proportion of 55 to 64-year-olds who think parents should encourage a belief in Santa falling from 83% to 59%.

Professor Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London, said: “Christmas is just a little bit lonelier and less joyous or magical than it was 55 years ago. The proportion of people spending the day itself alone has doubled, we’re less likely to say we enjoy it, and a lot less likely to think parents should encourage their children to believe in Santa.

“But this doesn’t mean we’ve given up on Christmas – indeed a large majority of still say they do enjoy it, and nine in 10 will spend it with family or friends.”

Around 80% of the public now agree Christmas is too commercialised, nearly unchanged from the 83% who felt this way 55 years ago.

In 2024, more than half (54%) say they would like to cut down on their Christmas spending. It was almost the same in 1969, when 52% wanted to reduce their festive expenditure.

Duffy added: “These long-term trends are also useful in reminding us that some things have remained the same, despite the huge changes seen.

“1969 was the year man landed on the moon, John and Yoko staged their bed-in for peace, the death penalty was finally abolished, and our current King was invested as the Prince of Wales. But even back then, eight in 10 were complaining that that Christmas was too commercialised – exactly the same proportion as today.”

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