Traditionally Speaking

Do you wish Christmas could last the whole year - wherever you live? In this festively-themed podcast, Scottish writer Tom Christie and America's favourite Santa Claus, Joe Moore, chat about the different Christmas traditions that are celebrated in their respective countries. With a new topic in every episode, they explore the similarities, the differences, the legends and the downright eccentric!

The ethos behind Traditionally Speaking is to take a look at the many different customs that have come to be associated with the festive season and then consider how they are celebrated in the USA, Scotland, and in other parts of the world. Some have become hugely popular on one side of the Atlantic, only to be completely unknown on the other! So with Traditionally Speaking, we hope to introduce you to some brand new Christmas traditions - some of which you might want to adopt for your own yuletide celebrations.

A new episode of the podcast is released regularly, so why not tune in and join the fun?

About Your Hosts

Tom Christie is an author based in Scotland. He has written several books on a variety of topics including modern film, interactive fiction, retro gaming and contemporary literature. However, he has written more books about Christmas than any other subject. His work has included The Golden Age of Christmas Movies: Festive Cinema of the 1940s and 50s, A Righteously Awesome Eighties Christmas: Festive Cinema of the 1980s, A Totally Bodacious Nineties Christmas: Festive Cinema of the 1990s, A Very Spectrum Christmas: Celebrating Seasonal Software on the Sinclair ZX Spectrum and (with co-author Murray Cook) Scotland's Christmas: Festive Celebrations, Traditions and Customs in Scotland from Samhain to Still Game. He has long been fascinated by Christmas, its traditions and the culture surrounding it.

Tom and his books have featured in publications including The Smithsonian Magazine, Le Temps, Times Radio, The Digital Bits, The Media Education Journal, BBC Radio Scotland, History Scotland and Retro Gamer. He holds a PhD in Scottish Literature awarded by the University of Stirling, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2018. He currently serves as the Director of Extremis Publishing.

​Image Copyright © Julie Christie, all rights reserved.

Living a fantasy life during two decades as Santa Claus, Joe Moore has a unique perspective for writing stories involving the Jolly Old Elf and his elves. Whether discussing iconic toys or introducing the time continuum as a way to complete all Santa must on Christmas Eve, Moore speaks with authority and believability that will cause every reader to believe as they did when they were young.

Joe is director of the North Pole Press, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Fantasy, children's stories, suspense thrillers, Christian themes, family reads, folklore... all this, and more fall under Joe Moore's purview. This multi-award-winning author can deftly take you from a seaside resort under attack, and then to the North Pole where you will become a child again and discover a sense of wonder you thought long lost.

Why not join him on his journeys? It promises to be an exceptionally fun ride.

Image Copyright © Mary Moore, all rights reserved.

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