Black Friday

[Prudie]

Can someone explain the origin and meaning of 'Black Friday' that I'm seeing everywhere at the moment. What's it all about? Thank you.

[redcrx]

it the day after Thanksgiving in the US and is usually when all the big push sales for Christmas season start

[redcrx]

http://en.wikipedia.o...ack_Friday_(shopping) this explains a bit more

[Prudie]

Thanks red so it is an americanism that has come over here. Can't recall it before now but it's on amazon, argos etc etc

[redcrx]

this is the first year that i have noticed it here too

[237SJ]

Radio Luxemburg adopted the name in the 1970s. Black Friday was about 3 hours every friday night when they used to play fantastic soul music.

[Andyvon]

Black Friday is supposed to be the busiest Christmas shopping day in the US when stores take the most amount of money. However, I think it's been shown that the busiest day usually falls somewhere in the middle of December.

[welshlibranr]

Black Friday is quite different here in South Wales, it's the last Friday before Christmas day, and the day that everyone finishes work for the Christmas Break, it's a night were there are lots of folk out in the pubs, and very drunk!......I always stay indoors on that night!......it's horrendous!..

[Andyvon]

That's the best idea Welsh! Think of their hangovers next day!

[welshlibranr]

Andy, they're welcome to the hangovers!.......but really, it's not safe to be out and about after lunchtime, there are so many drunks around, most of them are good natured, but some are not, so I just stay indoors!.......

[pastafreak]

Black Friday -or the Friday after Thanksgiving day - has always been the official start of the Christmas shopping period....
....not September as it seems to be now. ;-(

[welshlibranr]

True Pasta, but here in South Wales it's totally a different meaning, see my earlier post, it's the day everyone breaks from work for Christmas, and it's they day lots of folk go out and get drunk!......In Cardiff it's terrible, so much drunken behaviour and fighting!........... not as bad where I live, but not good here either!....we all dread it!...........

[Andyvon]

Pasta -

I was able to buy my father's Christmas present (a tin or tub of Celebrations chocolates) on August 24th. Despite my pointing out that we hadn't yet had the August Bank Holiday the Tesco staff told me they had just got the tins of chocolates in for Christmas!

Welsh -

I used to do taxi work years ago and Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve were the busiest nights of the year. You can imagine what many of the passengers were like when they were going home! I never had any threats or trouble as such, and I always refused to have someone obviously drunk in the car. Despite that most had been drinking and having to stop to let people vomit out the door or having them pass out in the car were not pleasant memories. I also used to see all those people you mention staggering around the streets at about 3am.

I've never been a drinker and I'm afraid I never really understood it all. Are they really having a good time?

[welshlibranr]

Andy, well I think they are having a good time!.......they just overdo it!......I hate to see them staggering around, and even worse, being destructive, which often happens here, the amount of brokeng glass around in the morning is awful, we live in a seaside town, and we attract lots of parties coming here from the South Wales Valleys!.....they have a crazy night and then leave a terrible mess in their wake!......