#CC16: 12 Days to Christmas

It cannot be denied that 2016 has been a relentless bitch (if you’ll pardon the word), with what felt like an almost daily announcement of the death of a beloved celebrity.

From David Bowie and Sir Terry Wogan way back in January to Leonard Cohen and Andrew Sachs in more recent weeks, this year has claimed far too many of our favourite stars of sound, screen and print.

Closer to home, two of my work colleagues also suffered bereavements earlier this year, losing their husbands far too early, while Medway lost one of its greatest champions in Mike O’Brien.

It is, I feel, therefore appropriate to begin the 2016 festive countdown with Monty Python’s Christmas in Heaven, imagining all those we’ve lost this year celebrating Christmas “upstairs” in much the same way as those of us who are still shuffling on our mortal coils…