Wrapping: Royal blue cover featuring a sparkling book.
Style: Gentle, ever so English poetry, read by gentle, ever so English acting royalty, to a background of gentle, ever so Christmassy instrumental music.
Content: Not songs, exactly, but classic poetry by Wordsworth, William Blake, Coleridge and Shakespeare. There are 22 in total, read by acting legends Joanna Lumley, Jim Broadbent, Hermione Norris and Stephen Tompkinson.
‘Tis the reason to be jolly: It’s the perfect calming background to what can be an incredibly stressful time of year. Let’s face it, Joanna Lumley and Jim Broadbent could read the phone book and make it sound soothing, so put have their dulcet tones reading classical poetry over Christmas musical standards is bliss.
Scrooge moan: Not much to dislike, but there are 22 tracks read by just four actors. It wouldn’t have hurt to have roped in a couple more voice artists to mix it up a bit.
White Christmas? No. Haven’t you been paying attention?
Blue Christmas? It’s hard to feel sad when listening to this kind of thing.
Stocking or shocking? It’s not going to please those who want Now That’s What I Call A Cash Grab 741, but for anyone who wants to relax after Christmas lunch with a glass of something, it’ll be well-received.
- Dan Bean
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