Major increase in young people spending Christmas Day alone in UK
The number of young people spending Christmas Day alone has increased ninefold, according to UK research that compared festive attitudes and behaviours in 2024 with 1969.
The study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London found that the overall number of people spending Christmas Day alone had more than doubled, jumping from 5% to 11% in the 55-year period.
For 21- to 34-year-olds, one in 11 will be spending the holiday on their own this year. That number has increased from one in 100 who said the same 55 years ago.
While the share of people aged 65 and over who said they would spend Christmas Day by themselves has remained the same since 1969 – 15% of over-65s – the number for other demographics has risen.
Prof Bobby Duffy, the director of the Policy Institute, said: “Christmas is just a little bit lonelier and less joyous or magical than it was 55 years ago. The proportion of people spending the day itself alone has doubled, we’re less likely to say we enjoy it, and a lot less likely to think parents should encourage their children to believe in Santa.
“But this doesn’t mean we’ve given up on Christmas – indeed a large majority of eight in 10 still say they do enjoy it, and nine in 10 will spend it with family or friends.”
The research, based on two nationally representative surveys of UK adults aged 21 and over in 2024 and 1969, is part of a series of studies updating survey results from decades ago to understand changes in Britain’s core beliefs and ways of living.
Other data found that 80% of people today say they enjoy Christmas, which has dropped slightly from 86% in 1969.
A large chunk of Britons also believe that shops push Christmas and festive goods on to consumers far too early in the year, with 79% agreeing with that statement.
Men reported the biggest change in attitudes on Christmas in retail, with 81% of males surveyed saying Christmas goods are sold too early – up from 59% in 1969.
The religious significance of Christmas has also dwindled in the UK, with 60% of people viewing Christmas as a family occasion, rather than a religious one.
When asked 55 years ago if Christmas was more about family than religion, 53% of respondents agreed, indicating a decline in the Christian faith in Britain.
Joe, 35, from London is among those spending the holiday alone. He said he sees his family throughout the year and they “share better times in the spring and summer”.
“The script for the day will be entirely mine. It’ll be salmon and poached eggs for breakfast, a Bailey’s whenever I please, and whatever the hell I want for dinner,” he said. “Why so many of us subject ourselves to the nightmare of Christmas travel, the commercialism and the expectations of it all is simply beyond me.”
Despite massive societal changes compared with 1969, Duffy said the data also showed that some things had not changed at all.
“These long-term trends are also useful in reminding us that some things have remained the same, despite the huge changes seen,” he said.
“1969 was the year man landed on the moon, John and Yoko staged their bed-in for peace, the death penalty was finally abolished, and our current king was invested as the Prince of Wales.
“But even back then, eight in 10 were complaining that Christmas was too commercialised – exactly the same proportion as today.”
Callout
• This article was amended on 24 December 2024. A graph in an earlier version showed a decrease in the number of people spending Christmas alone in the 55-64 age group from 1969 to 2024; this should have shown an increase and has been corrected.
