Boxing Day is one of the busiest days in the UK shopping calendar.
But as the years have gone on, especially in light of the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and all of the extra, unprecedented challenges it has brought to the retail industry and the people who work in it, many retailers have started to see the value in giving staff the day off to rest, recover, and most importantly, spend that extra bit of time with their loved ones.
Every year, more and more businesses appear to be making the decision to keep shops shut on the annual post-Christmas Bank Holiday.
In 2021, a handful of shops and supermarkets have already announced they’ll be closing doors.
Here’s everything we know so far.
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Supermarkets
Most supermarket chains across the UK have published their adjusted operating hours over the festive period, with many choosing to keep doors closed on Boxing Day.
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Here’s the list of supermarkets closing:
Aldi
Sainsbury’s
M&S
Lidl
Co-op
Waitrose
Tesco has plans to keep over 370 of its large stores open for 24 hours a day during the festive period in the run-up to the big day, and although Asda stores across Greater Manchester will be closing on Christmas Day, they will be opening on Boxing Day from 10am – 4pm.
You can find more information about supermarket opening hours in Greater Manchester here.
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Other Retailers
Home Bargains
Home Bargains has announced that it will be closing all of its stores across the UK on Boxing Day to give staff time to “recover”.
“We recognise how incredibly hard all of our colleagues have worked over the last year, to continue to serve the local communities that rely on them so much,” a spokesperson for Home Bargains explained of the decision to close.
“In light of this, we felt it was only right to reward store teams by taking the decision to close all of our stores on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
“And also close stores early at 5pm on Christmas Eve.”
All Argos stores will also be closed this Boxing Day.
The stores will remain closed “in recognition of the extraordinary efforts of colleagues throughout a challenging 18 months, since the start of the pandemic.”
Simon Roberts, Chief Executive of Sainsbury’s – which owns Argos – said: “Christmas is a really special time for so many, but because of lockdown restrictions last year, lots of us weren’t able to celebrate in the way we wanted.
“In recognition of this and to say a massive thank you to all our colleagues for everything they have done during the last challenging year, we will be closing this Boxing Day.”
Here’s just some of the other national names closing on Boxing Day:
The Entertainer
Poundland
Wilko
Habitat
Pets at Home
Holland and Barrett
Featured Image – Aldi UK & Ireland | Wilko
Trending
Sir Ian McKellen pays emotional tribute to long-time friend and fellow northern actor Sir Patrick Stewart
Emily Sergeant
Sir Ian McKellen has paid an emotional tribute to his long-time friend and fellow northern actor, Sir Patrick Stewart, following his death.
Sir Patrick Stewart – who was born and bred in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, and is best-known for his theatre work alongside an illustrious 60-year screen career, taking on prominent roles in franchises such as Star Trek and X-Men – sadly passed away at the age of 86, with his death being announced publicly yesterday evening (29 October).
And now, his long-time friend and fellow northern actor, Sir Ian McKellen, has paid tribute.
Sir Patrick and Sir Ian shared the stage together countless times over their decades-long careers, but also famously starred alongside each other in the X-Men franchise, and subsequent Marvel movies, as Charles Xavier/Professor X and Magneto.
The tribute, shared across Sir Ian’s social media platforms, reads: “Before everything else, Patrick was defined by being born and bred in Yorkshire, the proud county in the north of England which he loved to the end. You could hear it in his accented voice and in the stern honesty with which he told you what he thought and felt. Yorkshiremen have no truck with half-truths or avoidance of big issues. He wore his heart on his sleeve, which made him a man to rely on, to admire and in my case, love.
“We first met as ambitious young actors with the Royal Shakespeare Company half a century ago but we weren’t in the same productions.
“My first strong memory was a few years later, meeting him in the street in central London when he told me about an offer to take over a leading part in ‘Star Trek’. “But Patrick think of your stage career in the UK. Do you really want to risk getting lost in Hollywood for years and years?”
“Well, he took the risk and thank goodness for us all that he did, for not just his devoted Trekkies, but film and theatre audiences who marvelled at his using international celebrity to star in a string of cinema successes (‘X-Men’ of course) and in great classical plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, Arthur Miller, Peter Shaffer, Pinter and Beckett at Stratford-upon-Avon, in London’s West End and on Broadway.
“America was his adopted home, where he met his adored Sunny who has cared for him through sickness and health, through thick and thin.
“But he never forsook his origins: and the proudest achievement of the most respected and beloved actor of his generation on either side of the Atlantic, was his appointment as Chancellor of Huddersfield University in Yorkshire.”
Sir Patrick Stewart’s farewell performance will be in Avengers: Doomsday, which is being released in UK cinemas on 18 December 2026
Featured Image – Gage Skidmore (via Flickr)
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Classic FM will be back playing calming music for anxious pets this Bonfire Night
Emily Sergeant
Classic FM will be back playing calming music for anxious pets during this year’s fireworks season.
Bonfire Night may be loved by us humans for the spectacular firework displays and all the festive-themed activities that come along with it… but sadly, the November holiday isn’t quite so fun for our four-legged friends.
Loud bangs, flashing lights, and unpleasant strong smell of spent explosives are just some of the reasons why fireworks are frightening to pets.
Not only that, but with multiple bangs occurring from numerous displays across this time of year, pets are rarely able to pinpoint when and where the booming explosions are coming from, therefore creating even more anxiety around this time of year.
Classic FM will play calming music for anxious pets during this year’s fireworks / Credit: DESIGNECOLOGIST (via Unsplash)
Which is why, for the ninth year running now, Classic FM is once again teaming up with the RSPCA for two Pet Classics programmes packed with ‘the most soothing and comforting classical music’.
The music has been handpicked to help calm and settle any anxious pets.
A survey by the RSPCA revealed that almost two-thirds (63%) of animal owners reported their pet was distressed during fireworks season, and that playing relaxing music was the most common way (36%) to help calm or prepare their animal.
Presenters Dan Walker, Aled Jones, and Dawn O’Porter will each host a night of the specially created programme to help keep the nation’s pets calm through the whizzes and bangs.
Dan will present the first programme on Bonfire Night itself (Thursday 5 November), and then as celebrations continue throughout the weekend, Aled will be on hand to bring some peace to Friday 6 November, and Dawn picks up the baton on Saturday 7 November.
Emily Sergeant -
23rd December 2021 
