A host chats with children who are visiting Santa Claus in 'Santaland'. The hot topics include, 'What would you like for Christmas?'

Santa rides a tram down Bourke Street in Melbourne in 1959.

Kylie Minogue performs Eartha Kitt's 1953 Christmas hit 'Santa Baby' at the Concert for the Interfet Troops at Dili Stadium, East Timor in December 1999.

This excerpt from a Cinesound Review newsreel from 1954 is a great example of the perennial upbeat Christmas story.

Christmas is celebrated in the middle of the Australian summer under a blazing sun. But even in the heat it is a season for traditional things; for family affairs and meeting with friends.