As December 2025 unfolds, The Guardian is reaching out to its readers across the United Kingdom with a simple but poignant question: are you fully embracing the Christmas spirit this year, or are you holding back?
The newspaper's Life and Style desk is conducting a call-out, seeking personal accounts and reflections on how individuals and families are approaching the festive season. The central theme explores the concept of "leaning in" to Christmas—a wholehearted dive into the traditions, decorations, and social whirl—versus a more subdued or cautious celebration.
What Does 'Leaning In' to Christmas Mean?
The phrase captures a deliberate choice to engage with the holiday's customs with enthusiasm and early participation. This might manifest in various ways, from putting up decorations and buying a tree well before Advent, to meticulously planning festive menus and social calendars. It represents an active, often joyful, surrender to the seasonal atmosphere.
Conversely, many may choose a different path. Some might be scaling back due to financial pressures, environmental concerns, or a simple desire for a quieter, less commercialised experience. Others may be navigating feelings of grief, loneliness, or burnout, which can make the relentless cheer of the season feel particularly challenging.
The Guardian's call-out, launched on Friday 5 December 2025, aims to capture this broad spectrum of festive experiences. Journalists are interested in hearing what is shaping people's decisions this year, whether it's the state of the world, personal circumstances, or a renewed desire for connection after recent difficult years.
How to Share Your Festive Experience
The publication has provided a dedicated form for readers to share their stories. They are encouraging submissions that detail personal traditions, changes in celebration style, budgeting strategies, and the emotional landscape of the holiday. This collective snapshot will help illustrate the diverse ways the nation marks this time of year.
Contributors are asked to consider several questions: Are you decorating earlier than usual? Have your gift-giving habits changed? Is the cost of living affecting your plans? How are you balancing festive joy with personal well-being? The responses will form the basis of future editorial content, offering a grassroots look at Christmas in modern Britain.
The Bigger Picture of Holiday Celebrations
This initiative taps into a wider cultural conversation about how we celebrate. The Christmas period often acts as a barometer for public mood, reflecting economic anxieties, social trends, and collective psychology. By gathering these personal testimonies, The Guardian seeks to move beyond generalisations and present the human stories behind the headlines.
Whether you're someone who has had the fairy lights up since November or someone who prefers a minimal, low-key day, your perspective is considered valuable. The project underscores that there is no single "correct" way to experience Christmas, and that every approach, from the exuberant to the reserved, tells a story about contemporary life.
The findings from this call-out are expected to be featured in the Life and Style section in the lead-up to Christmas Day, providing a unique, reader-driven insight into the festive season of 2025.
