Santa’s Grotto launches lie detector test for children to scope of festive fibbers

For generations, parents have stood open-mouthed as their kid has told far-fetched porkies to Santa to get on the nice list. When Santa makes his naughty and nice list for kids this Christmas, he’ll have a little help – from a lie detector test.

In a one-off experience at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City, kids visiting the Meet Santa experience between the 10th-13th December will be offered a quick-fire lie detector test before visiting Santa Claus. 

Joining Father Christmas for the first time is the expert polygraph examiner Paul Bramley (aka Mr Fibmas). With over seven years of experience in court trials and investigations determining the tattle-tales from the truth-tellers, Mr Fibmas, will be asking children a series of serious questions to understand whether they’re fibbing or not.

From ‘when was the last time you ate a vegetable?’, ‘have been doing your homework?’ and ‘have you been keeping your bedroom tidy?’ Meet Santa visitors will be carefully linked up to finger monitors tracking changes in heart rates.

The fib-o-meter will then produce immediate data readings to confirm if children are on track for Santa’s nice list, or whether it’s time they ate a few more Brussels sprouts.

The Father Fibmas experience comes as new research conducted by Westfield revealed that 45% of children aged between six and 12 admit to being fibbers with 88% of children who think they’ve been naughty this year believing that they have mastered the act of telling convincing fibs.

The study via OnePoll also showed that two out of three children (63%) surveyed believe that they still have enough time to make it onto Santa’s best-behaved list. Which is good news as even if Mr Fibmas discovers they’re telling fibs, kids need not worry as they’ll still meet Santa! 

Katie Wyle, General Manager at Westfield London, said: “This year we wanted to enhance the Meet Santa experience and offer kids and families some extra free, festive fun before they enter the grotto. At Westfield we always strive to give shoppers a unique experience and we’re excited to offer a humorous twist on a much-loved family tradition this Christmas.”

The Father Fibmas experience is FREE at Westfield London on 10th and 11th December, and available at Westfield Stratford City’s Meet Santa on 12th and 13th December. No pre-booking necessary.

For those who can’t visit Mr Fibmas and the Meet Santa experience, Polygraph examiner and expert Paul Bramley has provided his top tell-tale signs to see whether a child is telling porkies.

PAUL BRAMLEY’S FIVE TELL-TALE SIGNS THAT CHILDREN ARE TELLING FIBS:
· Covering their mouth when talking
· Pauses that are slightly too long before answering
· Giving an overly detailed answer
· Avoiding eye contact
· Distracted and focussing on something else to avoid the question