Richard Newson feared his mum’s festive habit of whipping up hundreds of mince pies had gone with her when she died two decades ago (Picture: Blackpool Gazette/SWNS)
We all have our Christmas traditions. Some people only ever open their presents after eating dinner. Others do so after a big walk.
But one man from a Lancashire coastal town has taken commitment to a Christmas tradition to a whole new level.
For Richard Newson, the smell of the holidays wafted from his mum’s kitchen as she baked mince pies.
Marlene would bake hundreds every year and hand them out to local shops and offices in Fleetwood, a town near Blackpool, out of the kindness of her own heart.
When she suddenly died in December 2002, it seemed that festive ritual was gone with her.
That was until Richard discovered a batch of 43 of his mum’s pastry treats inside some Tupperware at the bottom of her old freezer.
Richard’s parents, Bob and Marlene Newson (Picture: Blackpool Gazette/SWNS)
Now every Christmas, Richard has his own tradition – defrosting and scoffing down one of his mum’s homemade mincemeat pies.
Richard said: ‘She used to bake hundreds of them and had started to bake them, storing in the freezer before she died.
‘So I decided to take them home and eat one every single year in her memory.
‘This year’s did taste like a 21-year-old mince pie.
‘The pastry is still great, short and crumbly, but the mincemeat did have a funny taste this year. But it wasn’t too bad!’
To kick off Christmas, every December 1, Richard lets the small pies thaw naturally and then heats them up slightly.
His family have long joined in with him in nibbling on the 43 mince pies to honour Marlene’s memory, though they’ve since turned their noses at them – the mincemeat is starting to spoil a tad.
‘Mum absolutely loved Christmas and we do too; she has passed on her extravagance!’ Richard added.
‘But I think she would be telling me off for still eating them now.’
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‘This year’s did taste like a 21-year-old mince pie.’
