Illustrator and author Raymond Briggs has also died.

He is most famous for The Snowman, now a regular fixture of British Christmas TV scheduling.

His contribution to the world of stories extends way beyond that. Not only a grumpy Father Christmas but also Fungus the Bogeyman, then the more adult oriented When the Wind Blows and The Tin-pot General and the Old Iron Woman to name but a few.

Raymond Redvers Briggs; 18/1/1934 – 9/8/2022. So it goes.

Reindeer, yes. Lappland, where Father Christmas is said to live, is famous for them.

Polar bears, yes. Also Arctic creatures.

I’d give you elves at a pinch, as they’re as mythic (oops, spoiler) as Santa Claus himself.

But penguins?

No. They are generally southern hemisphere animals; most often associated with the Antarctic.

So why are there illuminated penguins for sale as Christmas decorations and cluttering up the gardens of those who like that sort of thing at this time of year?

Just because they’re normally found in a cold climate doesn’t mean they’re anything to do with others who live in similar conditions. (Not to mention anything that might have happened about 2,000 years ago.) In fact they’re a whole world away.

Penguins at Christmas?

Bah humbug!