Tesco to give away hundreds of ‘wonky’ Christmas trees

Tesco is giving away hundreds of wonky Christmas trees this year to encourage customers to celebrate the “imperfect side of the festive season”.

The trees will be stocked at select stores for one day only – Saturday December 6 – with the supermarket suggesting that those taking them should make a donation to the food charities Fareshare and Trussell.

The trees, which would not normally go on sale due to imperfections such as unevenly spaced branches or leaning “ever-so-slightly to the side”, are having a second chance at fulfilling their Christmas destiny, the retailer said.

Jake, a Tesco employee, searches for a perfectly imperfect Christmas tree at Needlefresh Christmas tree farm in Yattendon, Berkshire (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall Media Assignments

Almost a quarter of Britons (24%) pencil in the second weekend of December for putting up their Christmas tree, a survey for Tesco found.

More than two thirds of those polled (68%) agreed that the thought of decorating the Christmas tree was more magical than the reality.

Four in 10 expected to smash a bauble (40%), 26% said their tree had been pulled over by a pet, and 23% had completed decorating the tree only to find that the lights no longer worked.

However 87% of people agreed that Christmas did not need to be “perfect” to be special, and 74% believed it was the imperfect moments that made the season “feel like Christmas”.

The trees will be available to shoppers on a first-come first-served basis from 10am on December 6, with one tree per household.

They will be on offer at Colney Hatch Extra, Borehamwood Extra, Hammersmith, Southport Extra, Goole Superstore, Glossop Superstore, Bristol Brislington Extra, Cardiff Extra, Dundee Riverside Extra and Glasgow Maryhill Extra.

Censuswide surveyed 2,000 UK adults between August 22-28 and December 1-2.