Before it was a Debenhams - it was an Allders! It used to be an exciting adventure going along to a department store when I was little and the big Christmas lights switch-on outside it was always a highlight of the year - as was getting its festive toy. Am I the only one who still has their Jingle Bear?placeholder image
Before it was a Debenhams - it was an Allders! It used to be an exciting adventure going along to a department store when I was little and the big Christmas lights switch-on outside it was always a highlight of the year - as was getting its festive toy. Am I the only one who still has their Jingle Bear?

11 Christmas things only children from the 80s and 90s will remember - or hate

By Kelly Brown

Editor

Published 12th Dec 2024, 12:12 GMT

Terrible tinsel, ceiling decorations and limited edition teddies - these are Christmas things which will stick with me forever as a child growing up in the 80s and 90s.

In Portsmouth the season of good cheer always involved a trip to Allders in the city centre to choose gifts for the family, and collect the latest festive teddy. I can’t be the only one who still has their Jingle Bear!

And needless to say the dodgy decorations have been well and truly banished from my home!

Here are 11 things which every child who grew up at that time must remember when it comes to Christmas time!

The Care Bears were a cute and cuddly addition that brightened up many a Christmas morning, and I certainly remember having them on mine. Needless to say my festive wish list no longer includes any teddies. (I just wish the same could be say for my daughter who has numerous plushies on hers!)

5. My Christmas wish list - is very different

The Care Bears were a cute and cuddly addition that brightened up many a Christmas morning, and I certainly remember having them on mine. Needless to say my festive wish list no longer includes any teddies. (I just wish the same could be say for my daughter who has numerous plushies on hers!) Photo: YouTube

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A trip to the cinema was always on the cards for me around Christmas and New Year time. And actually that remains the case to this day - although the choice of cinemas has very much changed now. My go-to ones were usually the ABC cinema in the city centre or the Odeon in North End.

6. Trip to the cinema

A trip to the cinema was always on the cards for me around Christmas and New Year time. And actually that remains the case to this day - although the choice of cinemas has very much changed now. My go-to ones were usually the ABC cinema in the city centre or the Odeon in North End. Photo: The News archive

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Tinsel was stuffed onto every tree back in the 80s and 90s - and now I can't stand the stuff. Beads and baubles are the way to go!

7. Tinsel everywhere

Tinsel was stuffed onto every tree back in the 80s and 90s - and now I can't stand the stuff. Beads and baubles are the way to go! | Canva/Getty Images

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A festive trip to U-Need-Us in Arundel Street was ALWAYS a pre-Christmas treat, especially to find those little gifts to pop on your Christmas lists. Picture: Habibur Rahman

8. A trip to U-Need-Us

A festive trip to U-Need-Us in Arundel Street was ALWAYS a pre-Christmas treat, especially to find those little gifts to pop on your Christmas lists. Picture: Habibur Rahman Photo: habibur rahman

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