LONDON, Dec 15 — Christmas cheer was disrupted in an unexpected way this week when Rev Paul Chamberlain visited Lee-on-the-Solent junior school in Hampshire, a county in South-east England, delivering an early dose of holiday reality.

Tasked with educating the Year 6 students about the birth of Jesus, the vicar took an unexpected detour into the territory of festive myths – and not in a jolly way.

It all started innocently enough, with the reverend sharing the Christmas story. But things took a sharp turn when, in an unplanned plot twist, Chamberlain told his young audience that Santa Claus was, in fact, a fiction.

The bearded gift-bringer, he said, was nothing more than a carefully crafted tale.

To add to the trauma, he also revealed that the presents under the tree? Bought by parents.

And those cookies left out for Santa? Gobbled up by Mum and Dad, not a reindeer in sight.

The reaction from the pupils? Total meltdown.

Tears flowed freely as 10- and 11-year-olds struggled to cope with the bombshell that their childhood beliefs had been unceremoniously shattered.

Parents were understandably upset too, with many claiming their Christmases had been “ruined” by the unexpected spoiler.

A spokesperson for the Diocese of Portsmouth quickly moved to contain the fallout, telling The Times, “We understand that the vicar of St Faith’s, Lee-on-the-Solent, the Rev Paul Chamberlain, was leading an RE lesson for 10- and 11-year-olds at Lee-on-Solent junior school.

“After talking about the nativity story from the Bible, he made some comments about the existence of Father Christmas.”

“Paul has accepted that this was an error of judgment, and he should not have done so.”

Chamberlain issued an unreserved apology to the school, parents, and children. To further smooth things over, the headteacher swiftly sent out letters, including a second round of apologies, this time from the vicar himself.

Let’s just hope the children of Lee-on-the-Solent can find a way to forgive the vicar, who may have learned the hard way that some holiday truths are best left unspoken.