Bangs Of Expectation
BANGS OF EXPECTATION
The first Christmas crackers were known as ‘Bangs of Expectation’.
Crackers came about because confectioner Tom Smith needed a way to market French-style sweets wrapped in paper. The story goes that he was inspired to add an explosive element by the sight of a log crackling on the fire. But in reality, it was his brother who came up with the idea, possibly inspired by magic tricks he’d witnessed while working in the music halls.
Launched in the late-1840s, Tom Smith’s crackers sparked a whole new Christmas custom. The company still exists today, and supplies crackers for the royal family each Christmas