Actress Joanna Lumley wants Brits to stop commercialising Christmas by spending a fortune each year.

The veteran star is urging the nation to stop making the festive season all about the extravagant gifts and sumptuous feasts and enjoy spending time with their family instead.

Lumley is adamant yuletide gift giving has got "out of hand" and she fears the true meaning of Christmas is becoming lost in the spending frenzy.

The former Bond girl tells Britain's the Daily Mail newspaper, "We have become a greedy nation that expects far too much from the festive gifts we receive. When did it become normal to buy people Tv sets, Dvd players and sofas for Christmas? It's got out of hand.

"I tend to give my granddaughters books. In my family, gifts are small and we give each other things like a bar of soap, a three-pack of M&S socks, a scented candle or a pretty bracelet."