Weather forecast
Warmer than last weekend, with temperatures ranging from 7C-14C. Friday night should be dry, except in the north of Scotland and parts of Northern Ireland. Saturday will be clear across most of England and Wales, but wet further north. The vast majority of the country should stay dry on Sunday.
1. Start your Christmas shopping
OK, it’s only December 3, but think how smug you’ll feel when all your Christmas shopping is done with weeks to spare. To help you decide what to buy, The Telegraph has produced heaps of gift guides, including the best for girls, boys, teens, travellers, skiers, and more.
It's never too early for Christmas shopping
2. Eat Thai
Thailand celebrates its National Day on Saturday. It’s a great time to go, with the rainy season over and temperatures hovering around 30C, but if you can’t grab a last-minute flight, try the next best thing: watching Leonardo DiCaprio in The Beach and cooking up a Thai feast. Here are a few recipes from the Food and Drink team to get you going (Chang Beer is obligatory).
• Pad thai
• Thai steamed fish pocket
• Thai fish curry
• Thai green papaya salad
Or be lazy and head to your nearest Thai restaurant. For those in the capital, Busaba Eathai, with 12 outlets, is a great option.
Thai Calamari is always a good idea. http://pic.twitter.com/p85MI1w5lE
— Busaba Eathai (@busabaeathai) December 3, 2015
3. Head to Britain’s newest National Park
Spare a thought for the South Downs National Park. Awarded its status in 2011, it keeps being overlooked by Google Maps, which for years has highlighted rivals such as the New Forest National Park, while ignoring the newcomer. “We don’t know why they keep deleting us, we’re sure it’s not deliberate but it is very frustrating,” said Trevor Beattie, chief executive for the South Downs National Park Authority, this week. Google Maps reinstated it today, but why not give it some love anyway? Here’s our guide to the best things to see and do.
Where is it then? Photo: GoogleMaps
4. Become a “brutourist”
That’s what you call someone who tracks down examples of brutalist buildings. OK, we’ve coined that phrase ourselves, but apparently there is a growing appreciation for this much maligned post-war architectural style.
The 27-storey Balfron Tower in Poplar, designed by architect Ern? Goldfinger in the Sixties, is being refurbished Photo: AFP
The National Trust offered tours of Balfron Tower (pictured above) last year and this week an eleventh hour bid was made to save Birmingham Central Library (pictured below) from demolition – with hopes it can be turned into a hotel or museum.
"Its inverted ziggurat form is well-known across the world and will draw visitors," believes Alan Clawley Photo: ALAMY
Britain is packed with other examples, such as Preston Bus Station, Park Hill in Sheffield and the University of East Anglia. See our guide for more.
5. Find the spirit of Scotland
Scots celebrated St Andrew’s Day on Monday, but you don’t need an excuse to discover somewhere new north of the border. What about a drive from Stirling to Inverness along what has been described as the most beautiful A-road in the world, or an even longer road trip on the North Coast 500 – dubbed Scotland’s Route 66 – taking in prehistoric bone caves, grand hunting lodges and heather-covered mountains.
• 31 reasons why we love Scotland
The North Coast 500 ? dubbed Scotland's Route 66 Photo: North Highlands
6. Watch Cate Blanchett’s “career-best performance”
That’s the verdict from Tim Robey, our film critic, of her performance in Carol, released last week. It’s “an exceptionally beautiful and gently groundbreaking film”, based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel of lesbian love in 1950s Manhattan.
7. Or Seth Rogen with the munchies
Also new in cinemas is a festive stoner comedy, The Night Before, starring Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. “It’s not the first stoner Christmas comedy – 2011’s A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas beat them to it – but it’s the most thoroughly drug-addled yet,” says Helen O’Hara.
8. Feel the festive spirit
We’ve been banging on about Christmas markets for weeks now, but one of the country’s best – in Lincoln – takes place this weekend (December 3-6) in the unbeatable setting of the city’s cathedral quarter. Its cobbled streets will be lined with stalls and entertainers, while goodies from its twin town, Neustadt-an-der-Weinstrasse, will add a German flavour to proceedings (we’re assuming that means gluhwein and sausage).
For details of other Christmas markets, see our complete guide.
Belfast's Christmas market Photo: Alamy
9. Join ye olde feast
Hampton Court Palace, in association with BBC Good Food, is hosting the inaugural Festive Fayre this weekend (December 4-6), featuring 50 food and drink stalls and demonstrations from chefs in the atmospheric setting of its Tudor Kitchens (roaring fire included).
10. Dream of Christmas
The retro theme park Dreamland Margate becomes the “Frosted Fairground” from Saturday, with festive additions including Christmas markets, carol singing and a Santa’s Grotto, as well as live music, an outdoor cinema and roller-skating. The makeover stays in place until January 2.
Ready for Festive Roller Skating from 5th Dec as part of The Frosted Fairground? https://t.co/OMSF55kzvN #margate http://pic.twitter.com/8jy65bSvQ4
— Dreamland Margate (@DreamlandMarg) December 3, 2015
There are also Christmas-themed events taking place this weekend in Bath, Norwich and Exeter.
11. Get your skates on
Outdoor ice rinks are now open everywhere, including Somerset House, Canary Wharf, the Eden Project, Brighton, Winchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Bath, Newcastle, Bristol, Manchester, Cardiff and Nottingham. For full details of each, see our complete guide.
Nottingham's outdoor ice rink Photo: Alamy
12. Take the kids to Lapland (UK)
For a full-on Christmas experience, sleigh bells and whistles included, this immersive theatrical day out offers both spectacle and hands-on fun, plus a personal visit to Father Christmas at the end. First comes a tour by his costumed “elves” through a beautifully constructed version of Lapland (in a forest near Ascot, Berkshire; laplanduk.co.uk). This includes a spell in the elves’ workshop to help make toys, and a visit to Mother Christmas’s pantry, where the children are given gingerbread to decorate.
A truly magical experience @LaplandUK #Christmas http://pic.twitter.com/Ujl6q6Utga
— Anaiza (@AnaizaFurniture) November 25, 2015
The elves stay in character and maintain the theatre throughout, encouraging participation from the young “helpers” (your kids) who have come to assist with Father Christmas’s preparations. There’s also an 'Elf Village' complete with ice skating, festive food and drink, and huskie dogs to stroke, plus reindeer to meet and magical snowy woodland paths to cross between each part.
• Plan a trip to the real Lapland
13. Find some arty bargains
Liverpool Winter Arts Market takes place in the glorious surroundings of Grade I-listed St George’s Hall this weekend (December 5-6). There will be jewellery, paintings, vintage clothing, photography and beauty products on show from more than 200 artists and designers. Entry is £2 (free for under 16s).
14. See Matisse
Another reason to visit the city is the Tate Liverpool's new exhibition, Works to Know by Heart: Matisse in Focus, which opened last month. More than 50 years' worth of his creations will be represented and it will be the only chance to see The Snail outside London as, due to the delicate nature of the work, it is unlikely to leave the capital again.
The Snail by Matisse Photo: TATE
15. Wrap up warm
Winter means bowls of hearty soup, blankets and lots of time with the telly, surely? If you’re that way inclined, then our pick of the weekend’s films are Back to the Future (Friday, ITV2, 7.30pm), Old School (Friday, BBC1, 11.50pm), ET (Saturday, ITV, 3.20pm), Clerks (Saturday, AMC, 11pm) and The Jungle Book (Sunday, Channel 4, 5.25pm).
16. Scare the bejesus out of someone
Of all the weird Christmas traditions, The Krampus has got to the barmiest. According to Alpine folklore it is a horned creature that punishes naughty boys and girls during the festive season. Hollywood has only gone and made a movie out of it – to be released on Friday – but it will be far more fun to create your own Krampus costume and take to the streets. They do it in Germany and Austria (usually fuelled by schnapps) – it’s called a Krampuslauf.
Now there's an incentive to be good Photo: GETTY
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