I wish it could be Christmas every day

What if, instead of a decadent drain on our finances, Christmas could SAVE you money?

It is my personal money-saving philosophy (call it Yulenomics) that the festive season is the perfect model for how to live cheaper the remaining 364 days of the year.

The first rule of Yulenomics: cook once, cook big and cook together.

While supermarkets try to push shoppers towards elaborate processed delights like Smoked Salmon Éclairs, snowmen bao or a Ganache Cottage (all gracing 2023 Christmas ads), true festive staples are remarkably thrifty.

A large Aldi turkey (twice as large as Tiny Tim) will set you back just £3.05 per kg. Come December, supermarkets will battle to offer us the cheapest sprouts and spuds for pennies. All prepped from scratch, ideally with some child labour.

And forget your air fryer: the energy-savingest way to cook is ramming racks of food into one continuously operating oven (under £1.50 for 5 hours). Is there anything thriftier than a week of eating leftovers?

Surely Yulenomics can’t justify Christmas bubbly? Well answer me this: what’s cheaper: your round at Thursday’s work drinks or a £23 bottle of Which’s Best Buy champagne? Their favourite Cremant costs £8.99 — I’ve bought pints in London that cost more.

Staying home is a core tenet of Yulenomics. Board games replace cinema trips, family walks replace gym memberships, a single unbearably warm room replaces central heating.

Big businesses would have you think you’re a Scrooge for not splurging on impractical gifts. But even the reformed Scrooge didn’t buy Tiny Tim a PS5 nor Cratchit some AirPods nor Miss Piggy more L’Occitane. He bought them a turkey, a coal scuttle and a living wage.

Look, I know this model isn’t immediately scalable. But Yulenomics reveals the factor that holds us back from living thriftily: time. Christmas only works when we don’t. To those pushing for a 4 day week: don’t give us more weekend — I’ll take 52 extra Christmases.

Nevertheless for millions of families, this Christmas will be the cruellest they’ve ever had. So be sure to practise trickle-down Yulenomics and spread the cheer to those who need it. Because if you want a real bargain, £29.73 to Crisis can buy an entire Christmas for someone experiencing homelessness. Even Aldi can’t beat that price.

A version of this article first appeared in Which? Magazine