What Things to Do This Father’s Day to make it special

9 Jun 2016

Gift Ideas

Dad in the diary for Sunday June 19th but not sure what to do with him? Follow our top tips and make his day…

Punching the air when your team scores, laughing until your sides ache or jumping out of your seat at a film – whatever you and your dad love doing together the most, here’s how to make it even more special this Father’s Day…

 Man of the Match

 We’ve done our homework, and there are matches and races aplenty this Father’s Day, whatever his favourite sport. For football fans, Euro 2016 will be in full swing, with Romania vs. Albania and Switzerland vs. host country France both fixed for the day itself. It’s not quite the season of strawberries and cream, but tennis-lovers can catch the Aegon Championships too. Meanwhile, the US Open will be underway for golf fans and there’s Formula 1’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix for followers of Lewis Hamilton – or if he prefers his sports of the pub variety, the World Series of Darts is on in the evening.

Whatever your pa’s sport of choice, some healthy competition at home will kick it off on the right foot – and no, we’re not talking about supporting the opposition! Write down some possible events of the match, tear into strips and divide into categories. For football they might be the number of goals for each team, who’ll score, the number of penalties, who’s bound to foul someone and a random category for one-off events like the manager storming the pitch. Everyone draws a strip from each pile (or a couple if there aren’t many of you) and scores 5 points for each one that comes up during the match – 10 for the random category. The winner takes home the prize – maybe some Dark Chocolate Brazil Nuts, a Slab or a Selector!

You’re going to need drinks and snacks to get you through the match. If he’s a fan of an ale or two, stock up on our delicious alcoholic drinks. From Cocoa Beer to Cacao Gin, there’s something to suit every taste.

Just for Laughs

Dad always up for a laugh? Know Tommy Cooper’s repertoire by heart? Or maybe he’s a fan of a series of funny films – think Monty Python or Ghostbusters? If any of these sound familiar, start your night with a round of Name the Joker. Ahead of time, compile a list of jokes and the comedian or movie they come from, plus a few family-favourite punchlines of Dad’s own making. Read them out and the first person to shout the right name wins the point – or if most people don’t know their comedians, ask simply ‘Dad or not?’ and see which lines he gets the blame for! Tim Vine is a goldmine of brilliant dad-jokes – think puns about libraries, goldfish and car exhausts…

If charades is the go-to in your house, mix it up a bit for a Father’s Day. Instead of everyone writing down films, books and TV programmes, write fun family memories, like your sister’s first half-marathon or that time you thought you saw Hugh Laurie at the supermarket – will your old man recognise your impression of his dancing…?

An evening of laughs deserves the Father’s Day gifts to match: present him with a DVD of his favourite stand-up, our Old Fossil – since he’s yours – in milk or dark chocolate, and a copy of the wit and wisdom of The Meaning of Chocolate to give him a giggle – and something new to quote!

MOVIE NIGHT

 There are a few ways to go with your Father’s Day movie night: pick two or three of his most-loved films, watch a back-to-back marathon of his favourite franchise or come over all nostalgic with family movies you used to watch as kids. Whichever you opt for, we recommend a roster of titles you know as well as he does – so you can set up the evening’s merriment…

True movie buffs will love a good round of Motion Picture Bingo – and if you share Dad’s interest you’ll have fun setting it up too! For each person playing, fill in a grid of squares ahead of time with things to look out for as you watch – just make sure everyone’s grid is different or they could all win at once! The level of difficulty is up to you. How many squares will your grids have? Do players win when they’ve crossed off any six panels, a line of four or not until they’ve crossed off the whole thing? Will they get to cross one off every time Jim Carrey pulls a face, whenever the main character says “you wouldn’t like me when I’m angry”, when someone in a red T-shirt comes on-screen or when you spot Easter eggs like Rapunzel and Flynn Rider appearing in Frozen (yes, really)? Set your own rules according to your players and away you go!

 Making it a late one? A round of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon takes no forward planning: just name an actor and the player has to find their way from them to Kevin Bacon (or your dad’s favourite Hollywood name) in six films or less – not as easy as it sounds…

To the winner of either game, the spoils: a packet of Chilli 70% Dark Puddles or Raspberry Ripple Ice Cream Bombes, or a 250ml bottle of Cacao Gin. To Dad, irrelevant of his scores: a Father’s Day H-Box just for him, a Father’s Day Sleekster he might be tempted to share or a Giant Chocolate Dipping Adventure that he has to – we promise it’s more delicious than the usual socks!

Join in on Twitter

 Think you’ve got what it takes to give your dad something tastier than foot warmers this Father’s Day? Take a snap and show the world your dad did #betterthansocks over on Twitter. We’ll see you at @HotelChocolat!