Xmas comes like runaway sleigh

Christmas in the Park from Auckland on Sunday night will include a bit of a Beatles touch. Photo/File

Christmas is coming. How do we know this? Because it's on television every day.

The commercials are becoming increasingly soaked in mistletoe and wine, chuckling Santas and lots of jolly bell-ringing sounds.

We are being assailed by advertisements appealing to our Christmas spirit in the form of spending ridiculous amounts of money on flash and indulgent items when we should be thinking about absolute gifting minimalism ... it's not about plundering the bank account to buy piles of stuff.

Birthdays are for celebratory presents ... if you want to blow the sort of money it costs to buy a flash set of tools "for hubby" or a set of glittering earrings for "that special lady" then blow it on a charity.

I'm not a grinch by any means ... I think I'm a realist.

So anyway, Christmas is everywhere and the wonderful thing about it is that it brings people together.

Such as in parks.

There are many big Christmas in the Park events and one of television's annual festive offerings is the big event staged at the Auckland Domain.

It's been going for 20 years, and of course being in the backyard of TV-land makes it a sitter for transfer to the screen.

It is a major show ... something like 34 different acts and items, so as long as the advertising grinches don't intrude too much the vast majority of them will be seen during the show's 90-minute schedule on Sunday night.

So who's there? Well, apart from about 25,000 people offstage there are people such as Jeremy Corbett, Frankie Stevens, Michael Murphy and "The X Factor New Zealand's Jackie Thomas and Benny Tipene ... and about 30 others.

And, yes, Santa will be there.

I checked out the song and dance list and while it obviously centres around things festive and Santa-soaked there is also a bit of a Beatles touch this year, including a closing medley.

I thought they'd have gone for the Stones, given they're here next April ... but then Paint it Black and Sympathy For the Devil would be poor form on such a frothy little evening.

And while Jeremy Corbett keeps the show fizzing along on TV3 this Sunday night, over on TV2 Tim Allen is fronting with The Santa Clause 3 movie.

Yep, Christmas is coming in fast, like a reindeer on skates.

Christmas in the Park, TV3 at 7pm Sunday: Across the channels they are appearing now. The Christmas shows and specials and films. I guess they make up for the fact we Down Under are unable (unless on a mountain-top somewhere) to delight in a "traditional" white Christmas. We can lounge in a park ... starting out white, turning slowly red as the late sun powers in.