As winter marches on and Christmas nears, they must source a yule log: firewood to burn for the Twelve Days of Christmas. At the cottage, Ruth winter-proofs the house, making a paper blanket and remedies for coughs and colds. It is also a chance to begin preparations for the Christmas banquet in earnest - in particular, a very Victorian invention, Christmas crackers. Ruth enlists the help of Christmas cracker historian Peter Kimpton.