Why Was The Partridge In The Pear Tree? Reverend Mark Lawson-Jones

A fascinating history of Christmas carols and their meanings. Who was Good King Wenceslas? What are the pagan origins of The Holly And The Ivy? And - of course - what was the partridge doing in the pear tree? Carols first appeared in the Middle Ages, when a carol was any song sung with the singer standing in a circle; they were banned under Puritan law and united the soldiers on both sides on the Western front; and they are the longest running tradition of Christmas.