Christmas

Archdeacon Elizabeth Cairns from Mullavilly Parish is asking for help in gathering 100 nativity scenes together in time for the festival.

Race is on to gather 100 nativity scenes from around the world

Christmas gift ideas from Olaplex, Hourglass, Sweaty Betty, Hunter and Neal’s Yard Remedies, with beauty, fragrance and pampering treats for under the tree.

35 best Christmas gifts for 2026 from just £2.99

Richard Kerrigan aka Rickydrewapiccy has built a growing business from his distinctive, humorous artwork – and his biggest creative projects are still ahead

'Hey presto’: How one print changed everything for NI rising art entrepreneur

Have a cracking Christmas! Boots has launched three giant beauty crackers – Joy, Magic and Cheer – each costing £25 and packed with six beauty treats worth over £70.

Boots unveils £25 beauty crackers worth over £70

The e.l.f. Christmas gift sets I'd pick for beauty lovers this year and prices start from just £15

e.l.f. has a range of Christmas gift sets for beauty lovers

Young Driver sessions are available on Wowcher

Discounts on driving experiences for teens ahead of Christmas

Deals site Wowcher and Jet2CityBreaks have deals on trips to Christmas markets in Europe

Trips to gorgeous European Christmas markets under £100

Cars available to drive include the Lamborghini Gallardo and many more

Lamborghini, Ferrari and Aston Martin supercar driving experiences

The American Golf Luxury Advent Calendar features 24 days of golfing treats, including balls, tees, accessories and more, all presented in festive red, white and blue packaging.

American Golf's £129 luxury advent calendar is a golfer's dream

Marks & Spencer has announced it will recruit more than 450 new colleagues to support its store teams across Northern Ireland this festive season

'Great opportunity': 450 Christmas jobs up for grabs at M&S stores across NI

Get your order in now for Christmas turkeys - and save some money if you have a Nectar carda

Sainsbury's Christmas food orders are live and turkey starts at £7.20

Ready for a mince pie? 'Tis the season to complain about Christmas arriving early

Half-price mince pies make an early Christmas taste test tempting

Dermalogica’s limited-edition 2026 Advent Calendar features 24 days of skincare treats, with a mix of bestselling favourites and skin essentials.

Dermalogica's £546 advent calendar is here - and it's yours for £229

Belfast's Christmas Market is regularly packed with crowds. Pic Colm Lenaghan/Pacemaker

Bumper present for Belfast as Christmas Market up for expansion

The Distinguished Service Order medals awarded to Major Robert Stuart Carter, recently returned to his family after being recovered following a London burglary

NI business helps reunite London family with stolen priceless WW1 medals

OK, so it might be January - but you can make Christmas 2026 truly sparkle by snapping up this clearance deal

This artificial tree is just £15 in an incredible post-Christmas sale
A massive January clearance has slashed the price of a natural-looking Christmas tree by 81%, making now the cheapest time to buy
Gareth Butterfield

This year's blow to retail numbers in Northern Ireland was much less severe than across the UK as a whole, offering a little festive cheer. Photo: Jonathan Porter/PressEye

Another tough Christmas for High Street shops as figures fall again

Northern Ireland designer outlet The Boulevard has announced that 2025 was its most successful year to date, defying national retail trends with exceptional growth in both sales and footfall

NI shopping outlet ends its most 'incredible year' ever and there's more to come

Motorists were faced with blizzard conditions in Co Antrim on Saturday when heavy snow made the roads treacherous in the Carmavy area. Photo: Stephen Davison/Pacemaker

Weather warning as many return to work: Caution urged over Monday morning ice

Natasha Byers from Lurgan, with dad Daniel Harkin, gave birth to her daughter Rosie-Lee Harkin, weight 6 pounds 1ounce at 10 seconds past midnight on the 1st of January in the Maternity Hospital, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast. She was the first baby born in NI in 2026. Photograph by Declan Roughan / Press Eye

NI welcomes in 2026 with Tots and Togs on New Year's Day

Many Clarke was one of the hundreds of hardy souls who took part in the annual New Year’s Day swim for charity at Carnlough Harbour on the Co. Antrim coast today. PICTURE BY STEPHEN DAVISON PACEMAKER

Swimmers brave icy waters for New Years Day dips

Colum Boyle, permanent secretary at the Department for Communities, who has been made a CBE in the New Year Honours list for public service. Photo: Department for Communities/PA Wire

Two senior Stormont civil servants recognised in honours list

Tara Moore, Professor of Personalised Medicine at Ulster University, has been made an OBE in the New Year Honours list for services to research, innovation and education. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

Ulster University professor made OBE delighted that hard work recognised

Elizabeth Hamilton, security guard at Stormont Castle, has been made an MBE in the New Year Honours list for public service. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

Stormont Castle security guard shocked at MBE honour for doing job she loves

National Trust director general Hilary McGrady, who is originally from Lisburn, has been made a CBE in the New Year Honours list for services to heritage. Photo: Megan Taylor/National Trust/PA Wire

National Trust director general delighted at being made a CBE

Rhys McClenaghan during gymnastics training at the Sport Ireland Campus in Dublin in 2021. He's become an MBE in the New Years Honours for his sporting success, including clinching a gold medal in the Olympics. Photo: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Olympic champion Rhys McClenaghan among those from NI recognised in honours list

Professor Paul Bartholomew, Vice-Chancellor at Ulster University, has been made a CBE in the New Year Honours list for services to Higher Education and Public Service. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

Vice-chancellor says CBE highlights success of Ulster University
Professor Paul Bartholomew has said it is “a great privilege” to have been made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), describing it as a wider recognition of the Ulster University’s success.
By Grainne Ni Aodha, Press Association

Helen Mark, host of BBC radio's Ulster Scots show Kintra, has been made an MBE in the New Year Honours list for services to broadcasting. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

MBE ‘the icing on top of my radio cake’, says broadcaster

Andrew Rooney, managing director of Rooney Fish in Kilkeel has led the business into new global markets and new products such as the award-winning Millbay Oysters on Carlingford Lough

NI makes much-loved prawn cocktail the heart of New Year celebrations

Cheryl Bakes

TikTok cook Cheryl Cooks asks families to 'prepare and enjoy Christmas day'

With Christmas Day celebrations over, Northern Ireland’s bargain hunters are turning their attention to the Boxing Day sales, traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Pictured at The Boulevard Christmas

Boxing Day bargains beckon as NI shopping centres reflect on a standout 2025

Co Antrim TikTok star Cheryl Bakes, aka Cheryl Smyth, offers her advice on making the most of Christmas without busting the budget

TikTok cook Cheryl Cooks asks families to 'prepare and enjoy Christmas day'

Belfast Operatic Company outside the Royal Albert Hall, where they took to the stage as part of the Royal Variety Performance.

Royal Variety seal of approval for Belfast Operatic Society

Cosori smart meat thermometer is sold on Amazon

Cosori smart meat thermometer review – a Christmas lifesaver (aff)

Coleraine’s Riverside Retail Park has been sold for £30 million, marking a major change in ownership for one of Northern Ireland’s leading retail destinations

Another NI shopping centre sold for £30m as retail deals heat up

With the countdown to Christmas well and truly on, it’s time to make a list, check it twice and get organised with your Christmas shopping...

Christmas and New Year opening hours confirmed across major NI shopping centres

Running for the first time over a three-day weekend (Friday – Sunday), a post-event survey has revealed that the event helped the local businesses in attendance to generate an estimated £650,000 in combined sales and attracted more than 9,000 visitors

Tedberry Market welcomes 9,000 visitors and helps NI businesses generate £650k

Cienna McCabe, Jace McCabe and Jack Killen warn to keep out of NI Water sites over the Christmas break. Image: NI Water

'Play safe, stay safe at Christmas': NI Water issues festive safety call

Lynne Gardner of Amazin’ Grazin’ flavoured wheaten breads pictured at Causeway Market in Coleraine

Christmas boost for NI bakery as demand grows for traditional wheaten bread

Pressure mounts on Evri over Christmas parcel delays in Northern Ireland

Pressure mounts on Evri over Christmas parcel delays in Northern Ireland

Travelodge rooms vary wildly in price depending on the day or location you choose - but a new online tool can help you find the sweet spots and bag a bargain

New price finder tool could slash the cost of Christmas hotel stays

Craigavon waste worker Wilson Chambers has been crowned one of the UK’s “Buffest Binmen” following a nationwide search celebrating bin workers across the country

NI waste worker crowned among UK’s ‘Buffest Binmen’ in charity calendar

Sarah-Louise Grundon and daughter Talia (4) on left, with Corrin Kennedy (7) and mum Courtney from Dunloy, pictured racing to catch the plane to Lapland. Pic: Declan Roughan

Talia and Corrin fly off to meet Santa Claus in Lapland

Savills completes £12.4million sale of Erneside Shopping Centre, Enniskillen’s premier retail destination

Owners of Rushmere buy another NI shopping Centre for £12.4million

The scene at Areema Drive in the Dunmurry area of Belfast where a women in her 40s died as a result of a house fire. Photo: Jonathan Porter/PressEye

Fire Service in festive safety plea after four die in blazes in three days

The Very Rev Stephen Forde embarked on his second year in a row as Belfast's Black Santa today, collecting money for charity. Photo: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press.

Black Santa sails into Belfast for second charity sit-out in a row

This is the cheapest way to send parcels smaller than 20kg this Christmas

Find the cheapest postage deals with this parcel comparison site

Northern Ireland viewers tuning into ITVX on Tuesday, December 16 may spot some familiar faces and accents as ‘Inside M&S at Christmas’ returns to screens, with M&S Craigavon becoming the first store outside of England to star in the documentary

New NI M&S store to star in ITVX Christmas documentary

The Grand Central Hotel has announced the completion of a £100,000 investment in the tallest cocktail bar in Ireland, The Observatory

Five-star NI hotel unveils £100k upgrade and new manager at tallest cocktail bar

Northern Ireland musicians and hymn writers Keith and Kristyn Getty will present their home for Christmas Concert at the SSE Arena on 22 December.

Gettys concert features programme crafted to lift spirits after WWI

2Taps is one of Belfast's most loved Spanish tapas bars. With it's 20 year history, the restaurant is located in the bustling Cathedral Quarter. Owned and managed by brother and sister duo Jarron and Victoria O'Neill Watson

How I went from kitchen porter at 15 to leading NI’s most loved tapas bar

Former Church of Ireland Bishop Rev Trevor Williams is putting a backpack and a water container under his Christmas tree to remind him of the plight of refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Bishop supports humanitarian aid crisis in Congo

Bunches offers bespoke Christmas plants on a next-day delivery - for bargain prices

This family-run florist can send Christmas plants for £22.50

Belfast shoppers are facing the toughest parking experience in the UK this Christmas, according to new analysis of more than 34,000 Google reviews

NI shopping centre tops 'parking naughty list' after being named UK’s worst

Family-owned Northern Ireland craft bakery and coffee shop, Knotts Bakery, has opened a new store in Bangor just in time for the festive season. Credit Facebook

Historic NI family bakery opens new festive location...'The wait is over'

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