Feeling Hot in the Heatwave? Cool Down with Christmas in August!

Here at That’s Christmas 365, we firmly believe Christmas is far too good to be restricted to December.

And with Britain sweltering through, multiple,  summer heatwaves, we’ve come up with a rather unconventional suggestion for taking your mind off the soaring temperatures:

Have Christmas in August!

Yes, really.

While everyone else is talking about the barbecues they can't have, paddling pools they can'r fill, electric fans that are out of stock and wondering whether it is socially acceptable to stand in front of the open fridge, why not draw the curtains, put on some Christmas music and organise your very own festive celebration?

There is something wonderfully ridiculous about eating mince pies while the thermometer outside is nudging 30°C.

Christmas dinner, with a summer twist

Nobody wants the oven running for hours during a heatwave, so forget the enormous roast turkey and create a cold Christmas buffet instead.

Think sliced turkey and ham, pork pies, sausage rolls, cheeses, cranberry sauce, salads and plenty of crusty bread.

Add bowls of crisps and nuts, perhaps some chilled prawns or smoked salmon, and you've got a Christmas feast without turning your kitchen into a sauna.

For pudding, Christmas cake and mince pies are perfectly acceptable, but we'd also suggest ice cream, strawberries and perhaps a wonderfully extravagant Christmas trifle.

And instead of mulled wine, how about chilled Prosecco, sparkling wine, alcohol-free fizz or a festive fruit punch packed with ice?

Get the decorations out

You don't need to retrieve the entire Christmas decoration collection from the loft.

A small artificial tree, some tinsel, fairy lights and a few strategically placed baubles will instantly transform your living room, dining room or garden.

If you're celebrating outside, decorate a tree or shrub with battery-powered Christmas lights.

Then create the ultimate surreal summer photograph: everyone wearing Santa hats and sunglasses while holding cold drinks around a Christmas tree.

Christmas music is compulsory

No Christmas in August party is complete without festive music.

Traditional Christmas carols, Wham!, Slade, Wizzard, Shakin' Stevens, Mariah Carey and all your other favourites can finally escape their eleven-month imprisonment.

If the neighbours complain that it's far too early for Christmas music, simply remind them that That’s Christmas 365 says Christmas can happen whenever you want it to.

You can also watch your favourite Christmas films, too, or listen to an audio book of the Charles Dickens Christmas classic, A Christmas Carol.

Secret Santa in August?

Why not?

Set a modest £5 or £10 limit and ask everyone to bring a silly, useful or unusual present. You could even make it a charity-shop Secret Santa.

Children could make Christmas cards, decorate biscuits or create homemade decorations.

Make your own traditions

That's really what Christmas in August should be about.

It doesn't need to recreate 25 December perfectly. It's an excuse to gather friends and family together, eat something delicious, exchange a few inexpensive presents and have a laugh.

So, if you're sitting there feeling hot, bothered and thoroughly fed up with the heatwave, don't just dream about cooler December days.

Put up some tinsel, pour yourself something cold and have Christmas in August.

After all, we're That’s Christmas 365.

The clue is in the name!