This page sets out how we research, write and stand behind everything that goes on Christmas Countdown. It’s intended for readers who want to know what kind of editorial they’re reading, and for press teams, agencies and tourism boards who need to understand how we’ll handle a partnership before they pitch.
Who writes here
Christmas Countdown is written by Linda Garrould. Every published page has a named author and there is no anonymous editorial on this site. Linda covers the planning, the cookery, the gift research and the practical Christmas Day and Boxing Day pages.
How we research
We start from one of three places:
- First-hand experience. Most of what we recommend has actually been in our house — calendars opened, hampers eaten, recipes cooked, markets visited.
- Primary sources. For visitor-facing facts (opening hours, ticket prices, dates, what’s-open guidance), we check the venue or operator’s own website or press desk before publishing, and we re-check before each annual refresh.
- Reader feedback. Corrections and tip-offs from readers go straight into the relevant post — usually within a working week, almost always within a few days.
How we fact-check
Anything that affects whether a reader spends money or makes a Christmas-Day decision — opening hours, dates, ticket prices, supermarket trading hours, last-orders deadlines — is verified against the original source before publishing, and a “correct as of [date]” note appears on the page so you can see at a glance how fresh that figure is. Each year, the seasonal pages are re-checked against current sources before the relevant calendar window. If we can’t verify a number, we leave it out rather than guess.
Corrections
If we get something wrong, we fix it as quickly as we can and note the correction at the bottom of the page (with the date) where the change is material. Polite spelling and grammar fixes go in silently. Spot something that needs changing? Tell us via the contact page.
Affiliate links and how we choose what to recommend
Some of the product links on Christmas Countdown are commission-bearing — meaning if you buy through them, we earn a small percentage at no extra cost to you. We use these links to help fund hosting and the time it takes to write properly.
What we don’t do is choose products by which retailer pays the highest commission. We pick what we’d buy ourselves, in the order we’d recommend it to a friend. If a product fits the guide and there isn’t a commission-bearing route, we link to it anyway. Full details on the advertising disclosure page.
Gifted reviews and press samples
We accept a small number of press samples each year — calendars, hampers, festive food, stocking-filler products — for review. Three rules apply to every sample we accept:
- The sample is clearly disclosed in the resulting post (usually with the line “We were sent this product for review”).
- Accepting a sample never guarantees a positive write-up. If the product doesn’t live up to the pitch, the review says so, or the post doesn’t run.
- Press send-outs are not advertising. We don’t sign off draft copy with PR teams before it’s published.
Sponsored editorial
A small number of pieces each year are paid placements (sponsored posts, brand campaigns, advertorial). These are clearly labelled at the top of the post, are written to the same editorial standard as everything else, and are subject to the same fact-checking. If we can’t write a sponsored piece honestly, we don’t take the placement.
What we won’t cover
Gambling, vaping, products targeted at children for direct purchase, anything that doesn’t fit a family-Christmas readership, and anything we wouldn’t be comfortable putting in front of our own household.
Get in touch
Reader corrections and questions: contact page. Press, partnerships and gifted-review enquiries: Work with us. We try to reply to readers within a week, and to press enquiries within two working days during the September-to-December peak.