Its delighful

[SuBee]

Drawing closer to Christmas, I'm reminded of the 'party tricks' my Dad and other relatives, predominently male, used to do at Christmastime to keep us laughing and occupied whilst Mom sorted out the food etc.....

I hope you can add to this thread, but the one that stands out so well in my mind is the one that I also associate with Eric Morcombe the invisable object being 'thrown' up in the air and 'landing' in the brown paper bag with a thud! It kept us kids occupied for hours. Even when we eventually found out how it all happened, we still watched like good un's.

Inhaling smoke, and blowing it out through his nose was another - it was just magic

 

[Rod]

Dad used to do that Sue, he also did a trick with a Dice thats pretty hard to explain without a visual prompt. But the trick above all other tricks he performed, was with two hats and little balls of paper, which mysteriously dissapeared from under one hat only to appear under the other, it was real magic through the eyes of a child.
Dad also told us the most thrilling ghost stories which mom asked him not to tell, for fear of him giving us nightmares :lol: Well I can tell you he had me hanging on every word, terrified in fact, but not able to cover my ears, I needed desperately to hear the end of the story, even though I'd heard it time and time again. In those moments I recall loving my old man so much, I felt fear and protection. It was part of Xmas, along with the smell of the parrafin heater and the games of Monopoly the whole family played together. I know, I have strayed perhaps with the topic youve started Sue, but in my minds eye, this is how I remember Xmas.

 

[Jerry]

I used to play a game with my kids using a dice. You got three goes and if you threw a six you could pass your sprouts to the person on your left!

 

[postie]

CHILDHOOD

I would wake up at about 4.00am on christmas morning and get chased by my dad, shouting " Christmas dosen't start till 9.00am, AND THATS OFFICIAL! :lol:

 

[jennyann]

Games

We kids used to play Monopoly at Christmas and that kept us going for hours. We had an unusual set that my Father bought back from Canada.
It had British place names as usual but the markers were solid silver. We
kids were always afraid of losing the markers. We kids used to get out the games and make sure everything was ready for the "Xmas Games". That included making sure all the playing cards in the pack were there plus a few extras, also that the Housey Housey cards were all in order and the wooden numbers were all there plus a hat to put them in for the caller.

My father sisters loved a bit of a gamble and at the Boxing Day party
which was most often held at our house. We would play Bingo....called Housey Housey. We would clear the table which had an extra leaf or two put in to accommodate everyone for the Boxing Day tea held earlier on.
After the Aunts had laughd and cackled in the kitchen while washing up, we covered the table with my Father's old travelling rug that he used on his sea voyages to and from Canada...plain one side and tartan on the other with a few moth holes and cigarette burns here and there for interest. The cash would then appear, a little bit of silver, threepenny bits, halfpennies and pennies only.
This is where I learned all the Bingo terms which seemed a little odd until you got the hang of them. There was a "kitty" with a certain amount for the winners of certain lines or a full card. It was great fun.

Then the playing cards would appear and we would play a game called "Newmarket" Four picture cards were placed on the table and you could put money on them to win if your card to match one of them came up during the playing of the game. To finish off the game any money left was put on one card and the person who held it would win all the money. I won three shillings once. A great haul at the time.
My Uncle Fred was a secret bookmaker and liked a drink and the Aunties, my Father's three sisters who lived in Birmingham and who only drank at Christmas, liked an assortment of drinks. The games went on until a snack appeared, usually cheese and pickles. We kids were allowed to eat some of the chocolates that the Aunties bought with Mom keeping a beady eye on our hands during the games if they strayed too near the Cadbury's Milk Tray, etc.
Those were special times that wouldn't happen now. We kids were sent to bed later than usual but the talking and laughing continued as we drifted off to sleep.

 

[Pomgolian]

Magic...

My Dad used to blow smoke rings up to the ceiling and also rub the Magic Tanner in to his arm and it would appear out from behind someone’s ear. 8)
We tended to have more of a party on New Years Eve than Christmas night, that would be when all the neighbours would come home with Mom and Dad from the local and Dad would play the piano, a guy would play the accordion and everyone, Kids an all took turns to sing a song. 8)
The Adults would also play Five Card brag for a few Pennies while us kids watched them, or listened to Andy Stewart and Kenneth McKellar on the radio with the hogmanay show.
Then it was time for my brother to let the New Year in for us and a few of the neighbours (He was the one with the darkest hair ).
Those nights really were magic nights in my childhood.

 

[colinwilliams1]

My grandad used to bash a chalk mark through a table onto a hand that was underneath the table.

And he used the the Dicckie bird one peter and paul ..

two little dickie birds sitting on wall
one named peter the other called paul
fly away peter fly away paul
come back peter come back paul