Have changed much but cost of your Christmas?

THE cost of Christmas in years gone by has been revealed.

The home interiors company Hillarys has launched an online tool that tells how much the traditional elements of the festive season have cost over the years, including the most popular toys and their cost.

The company, which has an outlet in Washington, says it offers a nostalgic look at what we got up to in previous winters.

And there are some tree-mendous surprises.

The researchers said this year is going to be the best ever to buy a real tree.

In 1975 a tree would’ve cost families £208 in today’s money but this year provides better value because they are being retailed as low as £19.99.

Tanya Irons, spokesperson for www.Hillarys.co.uk, said looking back was great fun.

She said: “Christmas marks the time of year when we go all-out, we want to have the best decorations, the best tree and provide the best feast for our loved ones.

“It’s interesting to see just how much costs have changed over the years, and try to predict how much we might all be spending in the years to come.”

Hillarys’ Cost of Christmas Past guide allows users to select any year going back to 1968.

You can find the cost of Christmas dinner that year, as well as the most popular toy.

The cost of Christmas dinner in 1968, the oldest year in the online tool, was £2.70.

The figure compares to £45.14 in today’s money and experts say the cost is 19% higher than today’s prices.

A pint of draught lager that year would have cost 13p – in today’s money that would be £2.10.

Here are some of Hillarys’ findings:

The worst year to buy a Christmas dinner was in 1975 and it would have knocked you back £55.91.

The most expensive must-have Christmas present was in 2005 when an Xbox 360 would have cost £415.61. The best year to buy that year’s most popular present was in 1995 when a POG game would cost just 88p.

Forgotten what POG was? It was a game involving what was basically milk tops.

The cost of Christmas dinner has gone up from 2016 by 75p.

Remember last year’s best-selling Christmas present? It was the Hatchimals Bearakeet at £56.95.

The best-selling toy in 2000 was the Teksta Robotic Dog, which was 17% more expensive than the average cost of the best-selling toys.

Here are the best-selling toys of Christmases past and how much they would cost in today’s money: ■■1968: Hot Wheels Racing sets – £48.05 ■■1969: KerPlunk – £32.03 ■■1970: Nerf Balls – £18.63 ■■1971: Mastermind – £22.96 ■■1972: Uno – £12.93 ■■1973: Shrinky Dinks – £4.76 ■■1974: Dungeons and Dragons – £40.22 ■■1975: Othello – £25.97 ■■1976: Magna Doodle – £19.94 ■■1977: Star Wars action figures – £9.36 ■■1978: Hungry Hippos – £22.14 ■■1979: Strawberry Shortcake – £24.65 ■■1980: Rubiks Cube – £4.16 ■■1981: Lego Train Set – £122.22 ■■1982: Stompers die-cast vehicles – £6.61 ■■1983: Care Bears – £53.43 ■■1984: Optimus Prime – £51.45 ■■1985: Teddy Ruxpin – £166.43 ■■1986: Lazer Tag – £93.16 ■■1987: Sylvanian Families – £18.47 ■■1988: Ghostbusers Proton Pack – £50.47 ■■1989: Batman Batmobile – £24.05 ■■1990: Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles – £8.51 ■■1991: GameBoy – £143.38 ■■1992: Thunderbirds Tracy Island – £63.77 ■■1993: Barbie Dolls – £20.51 ■■1994: Power Rangers Figures – £8.72 ■■1995: POGs – £0.88 ■■1996: Toy Story Buzz Lightyear – £41.30 ■■1997: Tamagotchi – £16.88 ■■1998: Furby – £40.79 ■■1999: Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? – £37.81 ■■2000: Teksta Robotic Dog – £60.82 ■■2001: Bob the Builder – £30.35 ■■2002: Bratz Dolls – £37.24 ■■2003: Beyblades – £8.81 ■■2004: Robosapien – £107.21 ■■2005: Xbox 360 – £415.61 ■■2006: Nintendo Wii – £228.15 ■■2007: In the Night Garden Iggle Piggle – £45.84 ■■2008: High School Musical Dance Mat – £22.49 ■■2009: Go Go Pet Hamsters – £11.99 ■■2010: Toy Story 3 DVD – £6.04 ■■2011: Leapfrogs LeapPad Explorer Tablet – £92.79 ■■2012: Skylanders Giants – £58.18 ■■2013: Furby Boom – £49.21 ■■2014: Frozen Snow Glow Elsa – £36.04 ■■2015: Star Wars The Force Awakens Kylo Ren Deluxe Electronic Lightsaber – £35.34 ■■2016: Hatchimals Bearakeet – £58.09