Gravy Day in Australia Date in the current year: December 21, 2025

Gravy is a thick sauce made from the natural meat or vegetable juices that run off during cooking. It is often thickened with flour, cornstarch, or other thickeners, and flavored with vegetables, wine, herbs, and spices. In the cuisines of the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Commonwealth countries, the word gravy refers to meat-based sauces and does not include vegetable sauces. In these countries, gravy is often served as part of the Christmas meal.

The connection between gravy and Christmas is reflected in the song “How to Make Gravy” by Australian singer-songwriter Paul Kelly. The song is written as a letter from a newly incarcerated man named Joe to his brother Dan. In the letter, Joe imagines his family’s holiday gathering and expresses his sadness at being absent. The song explores family dynamics, unresolved tensions, and the small, meaningful rituals of Christmas, like making gravy.

Kelly came up with the idea for the song after being approached by musician and producer Lindsay Field to contribute to The Spirit of Christmas 1996, a charity album recorded and released to raise money for Starlight Children’s Foundation. Kelly originally intended to cover The Band’s “Christmas Must Be Tonight”, but the song had already been recorded by James Blundell for The Spirit of Christmas 1994, so he set about writing a new song, drawing inspiration from Irwin Berlin’s “White Christmas”.

“How to Make Gravy” was released in November 1996 as part of The Spirit of Christmas 1996 and on Kelly’s four-track EP. The song was well received and was nominated for Song of the Year at the 1997 Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards and the 1998 Australasian Performing Right Association Awards, losing out to Savage Garden’s “Truly Madly Deeply” and Leonardo’s Bride’s “Even When I’m Sleeping”, respectively.

Despite being set in a prison and having no chorus, “How to Make Gravy” has become a Christmas classic in Australia. It was even adapted into a 2024 feature film starring Hugo Weaving, Brenton Thwaites, Damon Herriman, Kate Mulvany, Daniel Henshall, and Agathe Rousselle.

In the lyrics of the song, Joe wrote his letter on December 21. Fans have dubbed it “Gravy Day” and have celebrated the occasion by posting memes on social media since at least 2015. Other ways to celebrate the holiday include listening to “How to Make Gravy” and other Paul Kelly songs and perfecting your gravy recipe before Christmas dinner.

By the way, the gravy recipe mentioned in the song (“just add flour, salt, a little red wine, and don’t forget a dollop of tomato sauce for sweetness and that extra tang”) is real; Kelly learned it from his father-in-law. Kelly has said in interviews that some foodies have criticized the recipe, disagreeing with the addition of tomato sauce, but that certainly hasn’t stopped the song from becoming a cult classic.