Christmas this year is one Johnson will want to keep after he dramatically changed course last December and canceled plans to allow families to see each other over the holidays.
There were scenes of panic at train stations, with people defying social-distancing rules to get out of London before the new rules took effect.
The problem is that Britain is entering winter with among the highest rates of new cases of coronavirus in Europe, and reported 186 extra deaths from the pandemic on Friday, pushing its death toll over 140,000.
So far though, Johnson has been consistent in his decision to prioritize a return to normality and opening up the economy even it means higher infections.