Andrew Watts

Shalom, I’m Santa — how to be Father Christmas in diverse North London 

'There's no place for prejudice in a grotto situation,' I was told. I couldn't ask kids about Mummy and Daddy, since a child might have just a Mummy or two Mummies

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issue 07 December 2013
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Twenty of us are gathered in the management suite of a shopping centre to learn about benchmarking grotto deliverables, exceeding customer expectations and, inevitably, Elf-and-Safety. Most are tiny teenage girls; they will be the elves. I gravitate to the only other middle-aged man. ‘Santa?’ he asks, nodding in the direction of my stomach.

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