DEPLORING the increasing commercialisation of Christmas is nothing new, as a glance at the Malvern Gazette for a century ago shows.

The anonymous writer of the Current Comments column wrote that although Christmas might be an ideal time for the rich and the young, "to most of us, each annual recurrence brings increased expense and increased anxiety".

He continued: "Every year its requirements increase: the cards have to be more expensive, the toys more elaborate, the presents of a more advanced type, the Christmas literature of a more extensive range and incidentals of every description, whether of tips, purchases or hospitality, more exacting.

"The old fashioned Christmas, when relatives, friends and neighbours were contented with a plain but abundant table, a good fire to sit round afterwards, a well told ghost story or two, the visit of the carol singers and a hearty welcome are changed for more elaborate requirements on hospitality."

Having got that out of his system, the writer concedes that "Malvern has nothing to reproach itself with as regards preparations for the festive season".

He explained: "Shop decoration at Yuletide during the past few years has been elevated to a fine art, and in the town during the past fortnight there have been a number of most artistic displays."

For instance, the butchers' shops were showing "a tempting and effective display of Christmas fare, despite the fact that the climatic conditions are not of the kind usually welcomed by the knights of the cleaver".