On Thursday 23rd November, crowds of people flocked from all over County Durham to witness the official Christmas lights switch-on that illuminates Stockton-On-Tees' town centre just in time for the festive season to begin.

 

Named 'Stockton Sparkles', this annual event is organised by the Stockton-On-Tees Borough Council and features a range of festivities for all of the family to enjoy - including a 50-foot ferris wheel and a carousel in the Victorian Fair, street performers, face painting, and the crowd-favourite Singing Christmas Tree that is made up of a local choir. The Victorian Fair was particularly popular with visitors to the High Street this weekend as both the rides were free entry and incredibly fun to experience!

 

Alongside these exciting activities, the main event of the Christmas lights switch-on is enjoyed by thousands of members of the public who travel to Stockton High Street every year to witness the magical launch night. And this year Stockton Sparkles truly went all out; leaving no street around the town centre without at least one festive lights feature, decorating all shop fronts with sparkly snowflakes, presents or bows, and placing a grand Christmas tree in the very heart of the High Street for all to wonder at. There is even a gigantic Stockton Sparkles bauble located next to the Christmas tree that you can walk through the middle of! All of these dazzling lights were brought to life on Thursday night at 6:30pm when the mayor of Stockton-On-Tees was given the all-important role of switching them on, transforming the town centre into an extraordinary winter wonderland. 

 

The atmosphere of the crowd was electric (despite the frosty weather) and the council took to social media to comment on the warmly-received events of the light switch-on, saying that “There was Christmas magic in the air at tonight’s Stockton Sparkles launch night!” Furthermore, I had the opportunity to speak to one member of the public that attended on Thursday night to witness the highly-anticipated lights switch-on, who told me that they come every year and yet “have never seen a launch night as good as this one..my whole family came with me today because we were all excited about seeing the Christmas lights being turned on, it’s something for people of all ages to enjoy”. 

 

To sum up, the launch of Stockton Sparkles 2023 was a joyous evening not to be missed, and with the positive numbers that turned up to witness the Christmas lights being switched on, I am sure that we will be seeing the event return this time next year to do it all over again.