# Another question for the British contingent (this time about Christmas dinner) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 11, 2022, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350 "2022-12-11T23:09:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/1 "2022-12-11T23:09:16Z")
I just finished watching _ **Scrooge** _ (1935). Toward the end, Mrs Cratchit is seen cutting the top of what looks to be a pie or loaf of some sort. This can’t be a Christmas pudding, can it? I’ve never seen one that looks like this. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/0Hm9QCfkWnY/hqdefault.jpg "Scrooge (1935) [Drama] [Fantasy] [Christmas]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Hm9QCfkWnY) The video is keyed to start at the relevant point. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/2 "2022-12-11T23:20:13Z")
I’m not British but I’m a Patrick O’Brian (Aubrey & Maturin sea stories) addict, and have read a number of the books and articles written to flesh out some of the details of his incredibly wide-ranging descriptions of early 19th century life in England. The pie looks like it might be a “sea pie” which was eaten on land also, but which had a crust that was, essentially, an inedible sealed container made out of pastry, called a ‘coffin’, which facilitated storage and handling. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/3 "2022-12-11T23:27:44Z")
I’ve heard of those “sea pies.” There was an episode of _ **The Know It All Guide to…** _ where they showed how to make one. Would this have been a dish typically served at a Victorian Christmas dinner? What would the filling have been in 1843? ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/4 "2022-12-11T23:47:54Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Would this have been a dish typically served at a Victorian Christmas dinner? What would the filling have been in 1843? O’Brian’s books did not extend beyond the Napoleonic era, so I have no clue. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/5 "2022-12-12T00:16:21Z")
Ironically, “Video unavailable” in Britain. Or for me, anyway. Try this link instead. Note that there are two items sliced, one at the house of Scrooge’s nephew, and then one at Cratchit’s house the following morning. Quite a nice segue. I’m not sure, but I think they are both loaves of bread. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/nqRl5K8sEuw/hqdefault.jpg "SCROOGE (1935) - Full Movie - Captioned") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqRl5K8sEuw) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/6 "2022-12-12T01:28:42Z")
Right, it’s shown twice. Could be bread, I suppose. I’ve just never seen a loaf shaped or sliced like that. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/7 "2022-12-12T01:52:15Z")
It’s not Christmas dinner; there’s a transition to the next morning, when Bob is rushing off to Scrooge’s office on Boxing Day. So a meat pie on the morning, to set him up for the day, would make sense. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/8 "2022-12-12T02:02:17Z")
Right, Mrs Crachit is not slicing the first one, I misspoke… I just watched again. I guess they’re most likely bread. A meat pie might make sense in the morning, but alongside that enormous bird? I don’t think so. And yes, that is a nice segue. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/9 "2022-12-12T02:03:44Z")
I thought that the bird was Christmas dinner, and then the scene shifts to the morning, with the pie on the table instead of the bird. Could just be me, though. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/10 "2022-12-12T02:05:34Z")
Yes, I agree. It could be either pie or bread in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/11 "2022-12-12T07:57:20Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I’ve just never seen a loaf shaped or sliced like that. Looks like a standard pot bread shape to me. _Could_ also be Yorkshire pudding, I did think the top was a little bit indented, but not as cup-shaped as a proper pud. Wasn’t a pie (at least, the second one wasn’t) - the insides were the same shade as the rest of it. ---
**Author:** ![Staggerlee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/staggerlee/32/3134_2.png) [@Staggerlee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Staggerlee)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/12 "2022-12-12T08:11:44Z")
I think they’re both ‘Cottage’ loaves - you can see the round ‘topknot’ bit has already been cut off in the first scene. An extremely inconvenient loaf for sandwiches. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/13 "2022-12-12T08:22:49Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > It’s not Christmas dinner; there’s a transition to the next morning, It’s both. There is Christmas dinner at Scrooge’s nephew’s house. We see the bird. Then the camera pans to a loaf of bread. We see a knife begin to slice it. Then there’s a transition. We see a knife complete a slice and it’s a different loaf the next day at Bob’s house. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/14 "2022-12-12T08:51:07Z")
Looks exactly like a loaf of bread to me. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/15 "2022-12-12T08:52:23Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > _Could_ also be Yorkshire pudding, I did think the top was a little bit indented, but not as cup-shaped as a proper pud. [Yorkshire pudding](https://www.google.com/search?q=one+dish+yorkshire+pudding&rlz=1C5CHFA_enGB976GB976&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwju6Obk2fP7AhWMN8AKHZojBnkQ_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1792&bih=923&dpr=2) doesn’t look like that! Or need carving with a bread knife. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/16 "2022-12-12T08:54:52Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > [Yorkshire pudding](https://www.google.com/search?q=one+dish+yorkshire+pudding&rlz=1C5CHFA_enGB976GB976&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwju6Obk2fP7AhWMN8AKHZojBnkQ_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1792&bih=923&dpr=2) doesn’t look like that Now I need Yorkshire pudding. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/17 "2022-12-12T08:57:36Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I’ve heard of those “sea pies.” There was an episode of _ **The Know It All Guide to…** _ where they showed how to make one. > > Would this have been a dish typically served at a Victorian Christmas dinner? What would the filling have been in 1843? Don’t think so, I’ve never hear of sea pie, and the wiki link makes it sound like an 18th century British sailor’s dish that survived in North America as opposed to the UK. If I saw a victorian person slicing a pie, I would assume it was a pork pie. [![](https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/30/2020/08/pork-pie-cropped-04aa788.jpg?quality=90&webp=true&resize=440,400) ](https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/30/2020/08/pork-pie-cropped-04aa788.jpg?quality=90&webp=true&resize=440,400) But I think they’re slicing bread. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/18 "2022-12-12T09:19:10Z")
> [@Staggerlee](#): > > I think they’re both ‘Cottage’ loaves - you can see the round ‘topknot’ bit has already been cut off in the first scene. I think that’s it, explains the shape of the top. > [@SanVito](#): > > [Yorkshire pudding](https://www.google.com/search?q=one+dish+yorkshire+pudding&rlz=1C5CHFA_enGB976GB976&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwju6Obk2fP7AhWMN8AKHZojBnkQ_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1792&bih=923&dpr=2) doesn’t look like that! That’s why there was a capital-C italically-questioning “_Could_” at the start there. I know what a Yorkshire pud is _now_, I’ve made enough of them, but was allowing for some possible differences in the past that I don’t know about. It was the divot on the top that made me ask, but that’s clearly better explained by a cut-away topknot. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/19 "2022-12-12T09:37:26Z")
I do find the bread carving a bit weird - going across rather than up and down. But I doubt they were going for accuracy, probably more a quirk of the actor. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350/20 "2022-12-12T15:24:24Z")
As peter\_morris said ^, there are 2 different scenes and 2 different actors, both cutting a loaf the same way. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-question-for-the-british-contingent-this-time-about-christmas-dinner/976350.md?page=2)