Plymouth loves Christmas
With only five weeks until the Christmas Festival begins Plymouth is putting plans in place to make this the best shopping experience in the South West.
Working in partnership with Drake Circus the Plymouth City Centre Company is making Plymouth the place to be this Christmas.
Visitors to the city will be able to shop for high-end brands, view the Christmas lights, visit the Christmas market, have their pictures taken inside a snow globe and visit Santa!
The festival and Christmas celebrations will begin on Thursday 13 November with the annual Christmas light switch-on.
Singer and Panto star, Chico, and British R&B band, Damage, have been confirmed as the special guests this year, and more will be announced soon.
Taking place on Thursday 13 November outside Drake Circus from 4pm, with entertainment provided by Heart, visitors will be able to see the city centre transform with many new lighting features. The new features will replace old and outdated lights on Cornwall Street and New George Street and are expected to bring a more modern feel to Christmas.
Chico, most commonly known for being part of the popular TV show, X Factor, in 2005, is playing Jack in Jack and the Beanstalk – this year’s panto at the Plymouth Theatre Royal.
Following X factor his first single Chico Time knocked Madonna off the top of the charts giving him his first number one hit. The singer turned skating-star, captivating the nation with spectacular routines on ITV1’s Dancing on Ice, proving ever-popular with the voting public, reached the final.
He said: “I’m so excited to be helping turn on the Christmas lights in Plymouth this year. Everyone here seems so friendly and it’ll be great to see many people getting into the Christmas spirit. The lights always give that extra special feeling and you know once they’re on Christmas really is on its way. I hope to see lots of people there on the 13th – we’re sure to have a Christmassy Chico time.”
Joining Chico will be British R&B boy band Damage, who achieved success in the 1990s with eleven hit singles including Forever, Love Guaranteed and Ghetto Romance.
Following the split of the band in 2001 Jade Jones, one of the band members, remained in the media spotlight through his long-term romance with Spice Girl Emma “Baby Spice” Bunton of the Spice Girls. Damage returned to the UK music scene in early 2001 with their Cool tempo Records‘ début album, Since You’ve Been Gone.
In 2014 Damage reformed for the ITV documentary The Big Reunion.
Once the lights are turned on the City Centre will be buzzing with Christmas cheer. Stiltskin Creative Arts and Theatre Company and local school children will walk through the city in a lantern parade, some carrying giant and animated lanterns.
The parade will start and end at the Plymouth Guildhall and they will walk past many Christmas features in the city centre including a real Christmas tree and outdoor ice rink on the Piazza, Santa’s Grotto, operated by Ice Angels, popular snow globe and lit up bubble tree at Place de Brest.
Stefan Krause, City Centre Manager, said: “The Christmas Festival is going to be bigger and better than ever before. We are working closely with Drake Circus to shout about the excellent diverse range of shops we have here, from Hobbs to Pandora and Superdry to Bench – not to mention all of the toy shops!
“We have made some significant improvements with the illuminations and we will be bringing back the popular outdoor ice rink, snow globe and artificial snow.
“Plymouth is a fantastic city that loves Christmas. With so much going on, you must come and see for yourself.”
Market Place Europe, the UK’s operator in special event markets, is providing the Christmas Market. Located from the big screen on the Piazza to the bubble tree in the Place de Brest Garden, the market will be in place from Thursday 20 November until Sunday 14 December.
The Barbican and Sutton Harbour are also celebrating the countdown to Christmas with their own illuminations being turned on during the evening of the Thursday 27 November.
From 6pm there will be a carol service next to the ‘Mayflower’ Christmas tree, being positioned on the Parade in the Barbican. People of all ages will be spreading the cheer as children from schools and students from Plymouth University will be singing a number of hymns.
Christmas in the West End starts from Friday 28 November and the Plymouth City Market will be extending their opening hours. It will be open 10.30am to 4.30pm on Sundays and until 8pm on Thursdays.
If that’s not enough, there will also be a Victorian themed Christmas at the Royal William Yard on Sunday 7 December.
