DANNY ROBINS' EVENTS GUIDE: CHRISTMAS & BOXING DAY

Boxing Day Madness

You'd think Boxing Day would be a day when most people would be relaxing at home, but for some reason it seems to attract people to go out and do some genuinely nutty stuff.

One of the nuttiest is the Pagham Pram Race. Pagham is a village in West Sussex and it's been hosting a pram race for well over 60 years. Grown adults push prams around with another adult sitting in it dressed as a baby, stopping at each pub in the village for a pint along the way. The winner is the first one to end up in the car park of The Lamb pub. It's about 3 miles in total and kicks off at 11am.

In Scarborough, there's the 'Fishermen and Firemen's' game of beach football that's been going on every Boxing Day since the 19th century. Now open to everyone, not just fishermen and firemen, people play in fancy dress and then there are forced dunkings in the sea afterwards and a raft race. As you do...

In Grantchester in Cambridgeshire people race rolling barrels around the village, competing against other villages to see who is the fastest barrel roller. It finishes, unsurprisingly, in the pub.

Kenilworth in Warwickshire has a duck race. Hundreds of rubber ducks are released into the local river and the locals cheer them on until the winner crosses the finishing line.

And not nutty as such, but a fun and unusual way to spend your Boxing Day - how about a Balkan Boxing Day Bash at London's Southbank Centre? It's in the Clore Ballroom from 3pm and is totally free. Headlining is Max Pashm who'll be showcasing his Yiddish remix and Balkan Boombox with a live band playing a mix of Klezmer music, electro swing and Balkan beats. There'll also be a set from the brilliantly named DJ Bingly Bongly.

Chilly Dipping

There are traditionally a whole load of mass swims across the country either on Boxing Day or Christmas Day. Most are in the sea, some are in lakes - you may even have to cut your way through the ice to get in. A lot of them involve people in fancy dress, but the purists get in there in just their speedos.

So, if you fancy ruining your family's Christmas by making them take you to hospital with hypothermia get yourself down to one of these beaches....

Christmas Day

Boxing Day

The Last Tuesday Society's New Year's Eve Eve Masked Ball

Take note, that wasn't a typo - this event is on New Year's Eve Eve - i.e Dec 30th.

The Last Tuesday Society is an organization set up to champion decadent dandy bohemia - a little like The Chap I guess but they cast their eye back beyond the 1930s to the 19th century for inspiration and are a little saucier. They claim to be "devoted to exploring and furthering the esoteric, literary and artistic aspects of life in London and beyond." They organise events that hark back to the fin de siècle heyday of the likes of Oscar Wilde, Aleister Crowley and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

They organise a whole host or intriguing events - lecture, dinners, séances and philosophical discussions. All often accompanied by debauchery. It's run by Viktor Wynd and Suzette Field - two eccentric arty types. They have a permanent base now - a sort of 'museum of the weird' cum curiosity shop on Mare Street in Hackney. It's full of eccentric objects- stuffed animals, pickled body parts, skulls and Victorian artefacts - not unlike a set for a League of Gentlemen show.

The society are famous for their balls and this one is at Debut Club, under the arches of London Bridge. It's a good venue - atmospheric and just right for this. You can expect The Trans-Siberian March Band, The Congo Faith Healers, The London Gay Symphony Orchestra, burlesque, a hot tub and the world's largest chocolate fountain .Sounds terrifying.

Dress code - Divine Decadence. Masks obligatory. Clothing Optional.

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