From Caged Wrens to Beating Women with Holly - Some Ghosts of Past Festivities ; It's Not All Turkey, Tinsel and Toasting at Christmas and New Year. From Grey Mares Visiting Each Village Household to Hitting Women's Wrists with Thorns, We Look at the Ancient Festive Customs That Have Set Wales Apart From the Rest. Lisa Jonesreports

Western Mail › December 24, 2009

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Summary

PLYGAIN THE custom in many parts of Wales was to attend a very early church service known as Plygain - "daybreak" - between 3am and 6am on Christmas Day.

Men gathered in rural churches to sing, mainly unaccompanied, three or four-part harmony carols in a service that lasted for about three hours.

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Extract

From Caged Wrens to Beating Women with Holly - Some Ghosts of Past Festivities ; It's Not All Turkey, Tinsel and Toasting at Christmas and New Year. From Grey Mares Visiting Each Village Household to Hitting Women's Wrists with Thorns, We Look at the Ancient Festive Customs That Have Set Wales Apart From the Rest. Lisa Jonesreports

After the service, a day of feasting and drinking would begin. The main dish consisted of toasted bread and cheese - the traditional Welsh Rarebit - washed down with prodigious quantities of ale. For those who could afford it, goose was the main course.

The tradition ...

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