No, not this type.

The type that is a) the Anglican Church’s leading expert on St. Nicholas of Myra; b) accompanied by a distinguished Anglican cleric; c) dressed as St. Nicholas rather than Santa Claus; d) understands that St. Nicholas is the patron saint of children and of the imprisoned, and; e) decided to show some Christmas cheer down the local immigration detention centre!

But when the Anglican church’s leading expert on Father Christmas, dressed as St Nicholas himself, arrived at the Yarl’s Wood immigration removal centre in Bedfordshire, things took a turn straight out of Dickens.

An unedifying standoff developed that saw the security personnel who guard the perimeter fence prevent St Nicholas, the patron saint of children and the imprisoned, from delivering £300 worth of presents donated by congregations of several London churches.

In a red robe and long white beard, clutching a bishop’s mitre and crook, St Nick – in real life, the Rev Canon James Rosenthal, a world authority on St Nicholas of Myra, the inspiration for Father Christmas – gently protested that he was not a security threat, but to no avail.