Winterval

[3] The name "Winterval" was a portmanteau of winter and festival, coined by the Council's Head of Events, Mike Chubb.

[4] In October 2008 he explained:[4] Quite simply, as head of events at that time, we needed a vehicle which could cover the marketing of a whole season of events... Diwali (the Festival of Lights), Christmas Lights switch-on, BBC Children in Need, Aston Hall by Candlelight, Chinese New Year, New Year's Eve, etc.

Political correctness was never the reasoning behind Winterval, but yes, it was intended to be inclusive—which is no bad thing to my mind—and a brand to which other initiatives could be developed as part of the Winterval offer, in order to sell the city at a time when all cities are competing against each other for the seasonal trade.The programme of events in 1997 included theatre and arts events; marking of Diwali; candlelit tours of Aston Hall; an outdoor ice rink; a German-style Christmas market; Christmas lights in the streets; and a New Year's Eve Party.

Mark Santer, then Bishop of Birmingham, said in a message to his parishes that he "laughed out loud" when he learned of the concept of Winterval, which he considered to be "a way of not talking about Christmas" and "a well-meaning attempt not to offend".

One excellent example of this is the destruction by bloggers of the Tabloid staple of "Winterval"...The city of Waterford in the Republic of Ireland has named its municipal mid-winter festivities 'Winterval' since 2012 as an annual event that continues up to the present.