Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 25 Dec 2015

1. One can never have enough socks...

...Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn’t get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books. - Albus Dumbledore

2. Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree...

...In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall. – Larry Wilde

3. Let's just say that on this day, a million years ago...

...a dude was born who most of us think was magic. But others don't, and that's cool. But we're probably right. Amen. - Homer Simpson

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

4. A lovely thing about Christmas is...

...that it's compulsory like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together. - Garrison Keillor

5. Christmas is, of course...

...the time to be home, in heart as well as body. - Garry Moore

6. I was about nine and my father was sacked on Christmas Day...

...He was a manager, the results had not been good. On Christmas Day, the telephone rang and he was sacked in the middle of our lunch. - Jose Mourinho (who was sacked this year, thankfully, before Christmas)

7. Christmas is a necessity...

...There has to be at least one day of the year to remind us that we’re here for something else besides ourselves. - Eric Sevareid

8. The excellence of a gift...

...lies in its appropriateness rather than in its value. - Charles Dudley Warner

9. Christmas waves a magic wand over this world...

...and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. - Norman Vincent Peale

10. The best way to spread Christmas cheer...

...is singing loud for all to hear. - Elf, from the movie Elf