What do Londoners love and loathe about the city at Christmas?

We ask the people of London how they feel about Christmas in the capital.

Transcript

00:00Yeah, is there anything that springs to mind that you do like about London during the festive period?

00:04I guess I just like seeing the lights, that's mostly it. I don't do a lot of touristy stuff so

00:08it's just feeling cozy, hot beverages. I like Christmas markets and pretty little gifts that

00:16you can get, craft fairs, that kind of thing. Are there any in particular that you've been to

00:20that you like? Yeah, I've been to one at the community centre here in Crystal Palace and

00:24at the library, because I've done them as well. That's the Almodorens there. But also it's just

00:31nice seeing everyone, meeting the local people and having a glass of mulled wine and things like that.

00:36I love all the lights and everything and the decorations and all that. Do you often go to

00:42Oxford Street to see them? I used to, I don't go so often now, it's not so easy for me to get around

00:47but I used to. Anything that you don't like about London during Christmas? Probably trying to get

00:53Christmas presents and all the shoppers and the tourists, I don't blame them, but I just want to

00:59get my presents and fees. Shopping, touristy shopping, yes. Westfield and the atmosphere in there.

01:07If you had to describe the atmosphere or even like Oxford Street and stuff like that,

01:12how would you describe it? Claustrophobic, busy. There's actually nothing that I love about Christmas at all

01:19in London or anywhere in the world, to be perfectly honest, because it's all about greed

01:23and people spending money and I think the value of Christmas has been lost nowadays.

01:28Transport issues can be bad, I mean with all the train strikes over the last few years it was

01:34appalling, but I mean I'm hoping that's sorted. Things that I don't like is obviously the panic

01:39that people go through and I think a lot of people are stressed out and you can see

01:44that as you walk around the streets. Every year I've been in London 25 years and it's been the

01:49same all the time. You've still got people on Oxford Street running around trying to get the

01:52last minute presents and why can't they just plan in a little bit more time, you know?