Rome, Italy

 

People attend the traditional Christmas lunch for the needy organised by the Christian charity community of Sant’Egidio in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere on 25 December 2025.

Photograph:  Yara Nardi/Reuters

Beijing, China

 

A woman walks past images of the late Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong at a stall in an antique market marking the 130^th birthday anniversary of China’s founding father.

Photograph:  Jade Gao/AFP/Getty Images

Queensland, Australia

 

Lightning over Reedy Creek.  A woman died after being struck by a tree after winds of 100km/h lashed the Gold Coast, bringing down trees and power lines.

Photograph:  Dave Hunt/AAP

Christmas in Paris, France

 

A sunset over the Seine River

Photograph:  Anadolu/Getty Images

Teguise, Spain

 

Migrants rest on a beach after arriving at the coast of the Canaries.  The group of 48 people arrived on an inflatable boat on the coast of Lanzarote.

Photograph:  Adriel Perdomo/EPA

Boxing Day Hunt, UK

 

Riders during the North Cotswold Boxing Day Hunt in Broadway, Worcestershire, UK 

The yearly festive meets - numbering more than 200 throughout the UK, give the opportunity to showcase trail hunting and other lawful, albeit controversial, hunting activities.  However, protesters say it is simply a "smokescreen" for the illegal hunting of foxes.

Fox hunting was banned in England and Wales following the introduction of the Hunting Act 2004, which came into force a year later. It is also banned in Scotland via the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act 2002, but remains legal in Northern Ireland.

Christmas in Sofia, Bulgaria

 

A woman lights a candle as she attends mass on Christmas Day at St Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia, Bulgaria.  Reuters