Boxlist. A new way to sort out your TV viewing over Christmas and beyond

Imagine it's Christmas week and you are trying to work out what TV shows, films, movies, etc you might enjoy watching. 

But how do you sort out the wheat from the chaff, to coin an ancient expression? 

Well, fret no more! Because Boxlist is here. And what's Boxlist? It's Social Entertainment Discovery.

Boxlist takes into account our individual tastes, likes and preferences to connect us with TV and films that directly match our individual or joint tastes.

What ticks your boxes?

Ever been irritated or frustrated at not knowing what TV or films you'll like? Maybe you've spent half an hour browsing Netflix, given up, and ended up watching a rerun of Friends?

Or perhaps you've tried to contact friends over social media to ask for recommendations, only to be met with a list of 25 ideas, and yet you still don't know what of those (if any) you might enjoy?

Well, your precious downtime deserves better, and there is a new solution in the form of Boxlist.

What is it Boxlist? Boxlist is an AI powered social network for entertainment discovery and your new go-to place for discovering TV and film recommendations across all streaming services, and sharing these with friends, too. 

With Boxlist, you take a fun five min ‘taste test' to find out your film and TV preferences to discover your ‘viewing personality type’. You can then connect with people and content uniquely matched with that type.

Founder Greg Vartoukian is very excited to launch Boxlist after months of careful work and development.

Greg explains the concept behind Boxlist: “We're not all the same, but we're all fed entertainment content in exactly the same way. 

"This subjectivity is what makes us all wonderfully unique, but can also be frustrating when trying to find something that a group of friends or a whole family will enjoy watching together.

"Boxlist takes into account our individual tastes, likes and preferences to connect us with TV and films that directly match our individual or joint tastes. We’ve worked hard and agonised over perfecting our algorithms, so you can make the most of those precious spare minutes of downtime in today’s increasingly cluttered world."

Boxlist is the perfect place for any film or television fanatic, who is seeking a one stop shop for all their entertainment tastes. The basic platform is completely free to use, and you can join a growing community of already 4,000 members from over 80 countries.

And remember! Boxlist's not just for Christmas! It's designed to help us sort our viewing out for the rest of the year, too!

https://www.boxlist.com/

Enjoy a genuinely alternative family Christmas event at Butser Ancient Farm!

Visitors to Butser's Farm in Hampshire can expect a hint of magic, a taste of the old, enjoy some make and take crafts, a magical trail, mulled drinks, and sweet treats.

Butser’s magical experimental archaeology site is opening to the public this winter, honouring nature and introducing a festive twist in their new family trail

Butser Ancient Farm is opening to the public over this Christmas season and it's opening a warm invitation to families to slow down, reconnect with nature and explore the ancient folklore of winter.

As an exciting alternative to the traditional Father Christmas experience, Butser’s Ancient Winter Magical Adventure is honouring the balance of the masculine and feminine energies as the season turns. 

They are inviting The Deer Queen and Holly King into their magical, ancient houses to greet families and help them celebrate the turning of the year. 

The Deer Queen will be summoning back the light in The Horton House, Butser’s reconstruction of an excavated Neolithic building dating to 3800-3600 BC. The addition of a feminine character to the festivities is a nod to the idea of the rebirth of the sun at midwinter. 

Science tells us that our beloved Rudolph is actually female, as in fact all of Santa’s antler-laden reindeers are. Males drop their antlers in November, leaving them without antlers until the following spring, while females keep their antlers through the winter ready to protect their calves in the spring. 

Since the Stone Age the deer has been honoured. Her image was painted on cave walls, antlers adorned shrines and were buried in ceremonial graves. Deer were etched in stone, turned into head-dresses, and even tattooed onto skin. In ancient and modern folklore her antlers were frequently depicted as the tree of life, carrying animals, the sun, moon, and the stars. Butser’s Winter Adventurers will be able to meet the Deer Queen and make a special gift to bring back the light.

The Holly King is the personification of winter in various folklore and mythological traditions. He battles endlessly with The Oak King of Summer, reflecting the seasonal cycles of solar light and dark, crop renewal and growth. 

The Holly King regains power at the Autumn equinox, peaking during Midwinter. Our trail goers can meet him in the Saxon House. 

Their second Anglo Saxon building was finished earlier this year and is based on the foundations uncovered during excavations close to the neighbouring village of Chalton. It's believed the house originally stood somewhere around 700AD.

Despite its humble beginnings as a research site some five decades back, Butser Ancient Farm has become one of the South East’s top visitor attractions welcoming over 50,000 visitors a year including over 30,000 schoolchildren who learn about the lives of our ancient ancestors from the Stone Age through to the Anglo-Saxon periods. 

As a not-for-profit, independently operated Community Interest Company they rely entirely on the support of many organisations and individuals, plus their own fundraising efforts, to make their research and education work possible.

Therese Kearns, Experimental Archaeologist at Butser Ancient Farm explains: “The importance of the winter sun is a recurring theme in British prehistory, manifested in the many sites with clear evidence of celebration at this time of year. 

"The erection of massive monuments like Newgrange in Ireland and Stonehenge in Britain demonstrates the importance of marking this time of year which would have been crucial for early farmers.”

Kristin Devey, Events coordinator at Butser Ancient Farm added: “We're thrilled to be able to open the farm to the public this Christmas, so more people can experience the wonder of Butser at this special time of year. Families will be able to take away knowledge of the folklore of Winter, plus some lovely crafts and magical memories.

“The addition of a Deer Queen to our activities this year is an important balance to the Holly King tradition. Although it's not possible to know exactly how ancients celebrated the feminine as Winter reached its peak, we know the Venerable Bede wrote in 725 AD about ‘Modraniht’, or the Night of the Mothers.

"Some scholars believe it was an Anglo-Saxon festival that took place on the eve of Winter Solstice, or Christmas Eve. Representing the balance between the feminine and masculine, with our powerful Deer Queen and Holly King, is an exciting twist. They will enthral children and adults alike!”

The trail is running from 10am to 3pm on Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th December 2022, then again on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th December 2022.

https://www.butserancientfarm.co.uk.

Butser Ancient Farm

Chalton Lane

Chalton

Hampshire

PO8 0BG

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Thinking of placing a TV on your Christmas gift list? Then it needs to be a Mitchell & Brown one!

The truth of it is, if you have a new TV on your Christmas list, either for a nifty spot of self-gifting, or as a present for a loved one, now is the time to upgrade! 

Dan Brown, who has the very enviable job of Operations Director at the UK’s favourite home-grown TV brand, Mitchell & Brown, told That's Christmas: "This Christmas there's never been a better time to upgrade your TV to a modern 4K model."

And Dan can back up this with Dan’s top five reasons to upgrade your TV, just in time for Christmas. movie marathons.

Available content

“There's been a massive growth of 4K broadcast content available across all TV channels and all platforms. High Dynamic Range technology is being incorporated into major TV shows and films and can be enjoyed by all.” (NOTE: So that's what HDR means? Thanks Dan!)

Get a better SD and HD picture

“Incredible 4K upscaling technology in today’s TVs makes SD and HD content look spectacular. Content producers and filmmakers are employing ever-better cameras, even for SD and HD content, so a 4K TV will make the most of this increased picture quality.”

They have much-improved sound

“Old flat-panel TVs assumed you'd use your own soundbar, so onboard TV sound was always quite poor. However, today’s 4K TVs have great sound systems, and often have subwoofers and Dolby surround sound-built in.”

They are easier to use

“Smart TV interfaces are now super-simple to use, and the operation can even mimic your mobile phone. Remote controls have also become cleaner and easier to use with direct access buttons for key channels and platforms.”

It can save you money

“Today’s TVs, especially QLEDs, use far less energy than older LCD or plasmas TVs, so cost less to run. With global prices increasing, TV prices will only go one way in 2023 – up!”

Mitchell & Brown TV is one of the most innovative and reputable British brands in consumer electronics

They only offer the latest technology and great designs at affordable prices. Mitchell & Brown TV’s are manufactured by Europe’s largest TV manufacturer, created by people with a passion for quality and service."

If you would like to know more about Bolton-based and family-run Mitchell & Brown’s great British success story in a TV market dominated by overseas brands and internet retailing please visit their website at https://www.mitchellandbrown.co.uk ot give them a call on 01204 377 693.

Look on their site for your nearest local dealer, or if you operate your own local, independent TV business, get in touch to see about working with them.