Santa and his coat of many colours by Griselda Heppel
Santa, in fetching scarlet and white, drops by Chessington World of Adventures When my children became teenagers, they told me something that shattered my illusions about Father Christmas. Not whether he existed or not – even I knew the answer to that – but what he’s supposed to wear. The traditional red suit with white cuffs matching his snowy beard is apparently not traditional at all, but the result of a cynical advertising campaign by Coca Cola in the 1930s, forever associating the plump, jolly, big-hearted Santa Claus with the fizzy drink. Until then, Santa had boasted a lean, trim figure, clothed in a long, green robe. Well, there was only one answer to that. Utter nonsense. Teenagers think they know everything. Father Christmas/Santa Claus is depicted wearing red because he’s always worn red. Look at Christmas cards, films, book illustrations, department stores (all post 1930s, I admit). My mind flew back to my German childhood in the 1960s … and uncovered a me...