Is there anything as romantic as kissing under a parasitic poisonous plant?

Servant classes in Victorian Britain are said to have popularised the link with kissing. A man was allowed to kiss any woman who stood under the mistletoe, and if she refused, this would bring her bad luck.

Servant classes in Victorian Britain are said to have popularised mistletoe's link with kissing. A man was allowed to kiss any woman who stood under the mistletoe, and if she refused, this would bring her bad luck. One custom decreed that a berry must be pulled from the mistletoe after each kiss, and the kissing had to end when there were no berries left

For me, mistletoe conjures up scenes from old Christmas movies or that song about 'Mommy kissing Santa Claus'. We never hung mistletoe in our house growing up — not because we were anti-kissing, but probably because it’s not a native Irish plant, so I doubt there was any available to buy back then.

This was a time when Christmas decorations amounted to a straggly tree and perhaps some tinsel sellotaped to the ceiling.