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Oxford Street Christmas lights
The 2016 Oxford Street Christmas lights
GenreChristmas
FrequencyAnnually
VenueOxford Street, West End of London
Coordinates51°30′55″N 0°08′31″W / 51.515269°N 0.142013°W / 51.515269; -0.142013
Years active64
Previous event2018
Next event2019
Organised byField and Lawn

Oxford Street, a main shopping street in Central London, has been decorated with festive lights for many Christmases since 1959. They have been a regular and popular feature of Christmas in London.[1]

The lights were originally installed in response to nearby Regent Street, which had featured Christmas lights since 1954. The lights were paid for by shop owners and the local council, and were installed in order to give a sense of occasion to shoppers that could not be found anywhere else.[2] The tradition fell out of favour by the early 1970s because of the economic climate, and no lights were featured for some years. It returned in the 1980s following campaigning from local traders.[3]

Since 2010, management of the lights has been undertaken by Field and Lawn, a marquee hire company who also install the Regent Street lights. Around 750,000 bulbs are used annually.[4] Current practice involves a celebrity turning the lights on in mid- to late-November, and the lights remain until 6 January (Twelfth Night). The position of turning the lights on can be considered an aspiration, and an indication that a particular celebrity is very popular. The festivities were postponed in 1963 because of the assassination of John F. Kennedy.[1] In 2015, the lights were switched on earlier, on Sunday 1 November, resulting in an unusual closure of the street to all traffic.[5] In 2018, there wasn't a celebrity guest at the light switch on and instead several performers played at various stores along the street.[6]

The following celebrities have turned on the lights since 1981:

1980s

1990s

2000s

2006 Christmas lights, adjacent to Debenhams

2010s

2011 Christmas lights

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b "London's bright past". BBC News. 22 December 1997. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  2. ^ Johnes 2016, p. 7.
  3. ^ "A brief history of London's Christmas lights". CityMetric. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  4. ^ Hann, Michael (11 December 2017). "C7 bulbs or C9s? How Christmas lights became a nerdy obsession". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  5. ^ a b "Oxford Street Christmas Lights". Time Out. 12 October 2015. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  6. ^ "Oxford Street Christmas lights switch on 2018: When is it and who will perform?". Evening Standard. 5 November 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Swinnerton 2004, p. 24.
  8. ^ Sinclair, David (2004). Wannabe: how the Spice Girls reinvented pop fame. Omnibus Press. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-7119-8643-5.
  9. ^ McGeever, Mike (20 December 1997). "Peter Andre's got the 'Time'". Billboard. p. 18. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  10. ^ "Boyzone star gets in Christmas spirit". BBC. 19 November 1999.
  11. ^ "Charlotte lighting up London". charlottechurch.net. 21 November 2000. Archived from the original on 24 March 2009. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  12. ^ Hu, Claire (1 November 2001). "Seven light up Oxford St heavens". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  13. ^ "Enrique Turns It on For London Shoppers". Sky News. 21 November 2003. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  14. ^ "Enrique the Christmas hero". Mirror. 28 October 2003. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  15. ^ "Festive switch-on for Potter star". BBC. 16 November 2004.
  16. ^ "Westlife switch on festive lights". BBC. 15 November 2005.
  17. ^ "Westlife switch on London's Christmas lights". RTÉ Ten. 16 November 2005. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  18. ^ "Energy row over Christmas lights". BBC. 9 November 2006.
  19. ^ "Leona to turn on Christmas lights". BBC. 29 October 2007.
  20. ^ Carmichael, Sri (8 November 2007). "Thousands see Oxford Street lit up by spirit of Christmas". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 25 November 2009. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  21. ^ "Sugababes switch on Oxford Street Christmas lights". The Telegraph. London. 13 November 2008. Archived from the original on 5 June 2010. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  22. ^ "Jim Carrey switches on Oxford Street Christmas lights". The Daily Telegraph. London. 3 November 2009. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  23. ^ "Actor Carrey switches on lights". BBC News. 4 November 2009. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  24. ^ "Rihanna lights up Westfield". Evening Standard. London. 5 November 2010. Archived from the original on 8 November 2010. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  25. ^ "The Saturdays sing at Oxford Street Christmas lights switch-on". BBC News. 1 November 2011. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  26. ^ "Gary Barlow tribute ends with Take That reunion". BBC News. 6 November 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  27. ^ "Jessie J turns on Oxford Street Christmas Lights". The Independent. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  28. ^ "Oxford Street Christmas lights". London Evening Standard. 6 November 2014. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  29. ^ "Craig David to switch on Oxford Street Christmas lights this weekend". London Evening Standard. 31 October 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
  30. ^ "Rita Ora Just Announced She, Roman Kemp And Vick Hope Are Turning On The Oxford Street Christmas Lights!". Capital FM. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
  31. ^ "Oxford Street Christmas lights switch on 2018: When is it and who will perform?". Evening Standard. 5 November 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.

Sources

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