Real candles on Christmas tree

Never. my mother was afraid of fire and it was not uncommon sadly for people to get burnt.
Children and night clothes and candles were a dangerous combination. And still would be.

Never had them, but I do remember the very first time we had fairy lights - much bigger than any nowadays - on our tree, so exciting.
Our tree was always a very little real one, planted back in the garden every year - it never really recovered from the annual digging up and started to look a bit odd. I well remember the boy next door saying 'Has your Christmas tree had a heart attack?' ?
We still loved it, though. I think my folks did pension it off eventually, and allowed it to grow undisturbed.

I never knew that, I'm talking mid 60's onwards. I must have just missed it but I remember pictures with tree candles being lit in old story books.
I went to a church service and got candle wax dripped all over my coat from a leafy Christmas decoration perched on a window ledge by the pew. The coat was ruined, so no way would I go near a tree!

Worcestershire 1950s. We never had them but some friends did. Husband also remembers them from his childhood. They were lit, briefly, on Christmas Eve. We have now inherited the candle holders, tiny metal clip on type. We sometimes put them on the tree but never light the candles.

We too had candle holders on our tree in the 50's and Mum put small candles into them every year but I don't ever remember them being lit.

We also had some very delicate silver 'icicles' hanging under every brass candle holder.

Our baubles were made from the thinnest glass ever and quite often would break if not handled gently and then there were slivers of the stuff all over.
Mum packed them away in cotton wool.

Glasgow. In the 1950's my school had clip on candle holders on the large tree in the foyer. The candles were lit during the Carol Service.

My school used to have an enormous Christmas tree in the hall with a very large number of candles clipped to the branches, lighting them must have been a nightmare, and I don't even recall a bucket of water in case of disaster!

I brought some holders with candles back from Germany in the mid 70s for my mum and dad, as a novelty. They put them on the tree, but definitely didn’t light them.

I've never seen real candles on a tree, that I can recall. That's from approx 1960-onward.

My grandad used to almost set our house on fire every year with his Christmas lights. He had an adapter that went into the ceiling light that allowed him to then plug in his string of lights, the old type that were peardrop-shaped. There'd be much fusing of the house wiring and sorties to shops to buy new bulbs for the lights, the smell of burning electrical wires and sundry bangs and flashes. It was all part of Christmas!

We were staying in a small family-run hotel in Austria 7 years ago. The family performed a little nativity procession, which ended in lighting all the candles on the (real) Christmas tree.

There was a collective intake of breath from all the British guests!!

We had them on our junior school Christmas tree which I left in 1948.
They were only lit I think on the day of the Christmas party which we all attended, being a very small village school.
Less than 100 children, all girls.
This was Derbyshire, the party, with games and tea was the highlight of the year.

That was in the forties.

I remember a Christmas when Father Christmas caught his beard on fire from the real candles on the tree.

Cheshire, early 1950s and/or possibly late 1940s. We had real candles in clip-on holders, but they were only lit for a short time. We all gazed at them, and then they were extinguished until the next evening.

Is it the rustling sound GG13 haha.

I never use it, but when we were children it was an absolute must for the tree along with cotton wool snow.

lemongrove anything but tinsel it is a real phobia for me!!

Birmingham in the late 1940s. They were at Granny's house where all of her large family gathered. They were lit on Christmas afternoon and my uncle, who was an auxiliary fireman, always was posted by the tree as a precaution!

I am amazed, thought that candles on trees ended in the 30’s.
Have never seen them ( 50’s onwards) so I doubt they were common, but obviously some families still used them.
All the Christmas trees I saw as a child had no lights at all, just plenty of tinsel.

We had small candles on the tree during my childhood in the '50s. I don't ever recall them being lit though.

Essex,59/60 infant school,real tree nothing but candles,in the main hall,after we had eaten christmas school dinner,and sung we wish you a merry christmas,we would then be given little gift bags,holding a pencil,rubber,and some road safety material,sponsored by the Tufty club,who I believe was a squirrel who promoted road safety,we where then let loose early for the christmas holiday...happy days

So interesting. Having a conversation with Brits in Switzerland who say it was common in the 50s/60s/70s ... in the UK. And yet neither OH who lived there all his life, nor me, who lived in UK since 1970 - remember anyone, friend, neighbour, colleague, etc- who had real candles on their tree. So thanks.
Keep them coming, please.

An artificial tree that my grandad bought at the end of the 1930s had candle holders on the end of the branches. When I was a young child, in the 60s, I remember candles in those being lit very briefly as soon as we finished decorating the tree. (West Yorkshire)

The rest of the time, some 1930s Disney electric tree lights were used.
I still have those lights now, though they haven't been used for donkeys' years - maybe they will be worth something one day, though it will be a miracle if they still work!

Yes through 50 s we had the clip on thingys with the candle in the holder they were lit but I can’t remember how long for
East anglia

We had real candles on our Christmas tree in the 1950's. They were in metal clip-on holders with a pattern. They were lit, but I think just during Christmas lunch. This was in what was then Lancashire, now Greater Manchester. The tree wasn't put up till Christmas Eve.

I have three coloured metal tree candle holders that date back to my mother's childhood - roughly 1915 to 1930 -. They do not have candles in them but nevertheless they go on the tree every year.