Comedian Stewart Lee has been on the radio pushing the familiar line that Birmingham City Council was accused of “banning” Christmas.

As he correctly says in his interview, which you can hear for yourself here, “they called the celebrations as a whole Winterval and you were allowed to use the word Christmas, and you were allowed to have a Christmas tree” and to celebrate other religious festivals such as Diwali too.

I thought it might be useful to remind people what was actually reported, in our sister paper The Sunday Mercury by the excellent Bob Haywood, at the time (November 8 1998):

A LEADING churchman has launched an astonishing attack on council chiefs over Christmas.
The Bishop of Birmingham, the Rt Rev Mark Santer, has accused Birmingham City Council of replacing Christmas with `Winterval’.

He calls the decision madness – and says there is a danger of the secular world becoming deeply embarrased by faith.
The Bishop’s hard-hitting remarks are contained in his Christmas message which has been sent to all clergy and churches in the diocese.
Last night, the city council said Winterval was not another name for Christmas, and the winter festival would have traditional Christmas at its heart.

The row comes five years after the city council insisted on Christmas lights being called festive lights to avoid offending religious and racial minorities.

The decision – condemned as barmy political correctness – was later overturned… and Christmas lights returned in later years.
In his Christmas message, Bishop Santer says: “I wonder what madness is in store for us this Christmas?

“I confess I laughed out loud when our city council came out with ‘Winterval’ as a way of not talking about Christmas!
“No doubt it was a weleaning attempt not to offend, not to exclude; not really to say anything at all.

“Once it was religious people who were seen as killjoys; think of the 17th century Puritans trying to ban Christmas festivities.

“Now, it seems, the secular world, which professes respect for all, is actually deeply embarrassed by faith.”

The city council-organised Winterval runs for 42 days and is aimed at providing festive family fun over Christmas and New Year.
An aide of Bishop Santer said: “We are supposed to be a Christian nation and, while we welcome our brothers and sisters from other faiths, Christmas is one of the principal festivities of the Christian church.
“The Bishop feels that to give it another name is rather strange. I am sure people of other faiths are not offended by Christmas being called Christmas.”
Coun John Alden, Tory deputy leader on the city council, said: “The sad Socialists are caught in a time warp because, while they may be worried about calling Christmas ‘Christmas’, ethnic minorities don’t worry about it at all.
“They have their own festivities and they are quite happy that Christians have theirs. Indeed, most enthusiastically celebrate it.”
A city council spokeswoman said: “It is sad the Bishop feels this way, particularly as we have invested money this year into drawing attention to the Cathedral as part of the Christmas celebrations by placing tasteful white lighting throughout the tree a rea.

“Far from not talking about Christmas, the events within Winterval and the publicity material for it are covered in Christmas greetings and traditional images, including angels and carol singers.”