Swansea's Famous Co-op Santa

Merry Christmas! However you are spending it, I hope you have an enjoyable and restful day.

This Wednesday’s newsletter is short and sweet. Enjoy some memories of one the unforgettable Father Christmases that used to inhabit a basement grotto in the Co-op department store on Oxford Street in the city centre.

“Santa was anything but photogenic, but he was a lovely gentle, gentleman. I think the fact that parents took their children to the Christmas Grotto year after year, pays testimony to the fact that he was actually a pleasant person.” - Helen Jones

"I believed we were going to the North Pole because of the moving scenery it was magical and the best Santas Grotto." - Gaynor Allen Mossop

"I worked in the grotto with Father Christmas after packing all the gifts in the boardroom on the 3rd floor. Worked in the Co-op for 32 years." - Carol Armor

"In the mid 80's I had a Saturday job at the Co-Op and due to management, I had to sub for Santa for an hour during his dinner break. I was 17, his beard smelled of talc and bad breath and I always hated doing it because I thought the kids deserved a cuddly old man... Not a 17 yr old rugby player." - Brian Young

"They always made such an effort to make it really interesting! I remember one year, they had you climb into a 'rocket' altogether, and it moved, and had space murals moving past the 'windows'. When it came to rest, you stepped out the other side to the Grotto!" - Sian Finselbach.

“I used to work in the Publicity Dept at the Co-op in the late 60s and we used to go in on a Sunday to decorate and set up the toy section. Alfie Deuchmann (not sure of the spelling) was the brilliant artist who carved and painted all the figures for the Grotto and did all the sign writing... he carved all the figures from polystyrene for the grottos. Penguins etc." - Pete Northcott

And to finish, here’s how a mum in The South Wales Evening Post rated the Co-op Santa on a visit in December 1993 - “Santa was very friendly with a soft kind voice, he chatted to my three-year-old son, Gavin, about the video and Santa’s reindeer, for at least 10 minutes.”

Do you have memories of the Co-op Santa in Swansea? Let me know in the comments!

Catch you on Sunday, and Happy Christmas again!

Andrew.

A big thank you and credit to the members of the Swansea and its history and The Swansea History Society Facebook groups, where many of these stories were shared.