Most Brits no longer think Christmas pudding important for festive table, poll finds

The traditional Christmas pudding is losing its place at the festive table, with a survey showing that the majority of adults who celebrate find it less significant.

The research, conducted by YouGov for the Royal Mint, uncovered that six out of 10 (or 59%) respondents don't regard the pud as an essential part of their Christmas Day festivities. However, the still reigns supreme, with 92% of those surveyed claiming it's crucial to their Yuletide joy.

Over three-quarters of participants (77%) haven't even heard of Stir-up Sunday, which is traditionally the time households would get together to stir up their Christmas pudding mix ahead of Advent. Just a mere 4% follow the Stir-up Sunday practice, yet 13% reckon keeping an elf on the shelf is key to their festive fun.

In a nod to sustainability, the Royal Mint released a special "sustainable" sixpence coin for Christmas 2024, crafted from recycled X-ray film silver, with a limited edition of 100 coins selling out in just 24 hours. Although other sixpences are up for grabs on its website, from 2025, all will be minted from reclaimed silver.

The good old sixpence, having bowed out of regular currency circulation over 50 years ago, maintains its status in British Christmas customs. The tradition of stirring sixpences into Christmas puddings for good luck is being kept alive, but diners should be warned before they dive in.

Rebecca Morgan, director of commemorative coin at the Royal Mint, remarked: "The Royal Mint is famous for its rich heritage, and we believe that tradition should never be lost – it can be reinvented. Our recovered silver sixpence is not only a symbol of good fortune, but also a symbol of a more modern and sustainable festive season."

Food historian and author Annie Gray explained the origins of Stir-up Sunday, saying: "Stir-up Sunday is a tradition which started in the Victorian era as a tongue-in-cheek play on an Anglican church prayer, which begins: ‘Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord ...’"

She elaborated on the historical context: "The words were used as a reminder to start stirring up the plum pudding – the original Christmas dish – so it had time to mature before Christmas Day. The sixpence came from another old tradition, that of hiding tokens in the twelfth cake, the precursor to our modern Christmas cake, eaten on twelfth night."

"Although this was eventually replaced with the Christmas cake eaten today, families kept to the tradition of taking it in turn to stir the mix and make a wish. The finder of the sixpence was promised wealth, health and happiness for the coming year."

Despite changes in culinary tastes, a survey found that 70% of people still value festive traditions. Unwrapping presents came in as the second most popular Christmas tradition, just behind the Christmas dinner, with 90% of Christmas celebrators participating. A good 65% said they enjoy crafting and/or sending Christmas cards, while 26% partake in attending a show or pantomime.

Some 76% of millennials view festive traditions as important – more than any other generation, according to the survey conducted in July.