After another incredibly successful Christmas Festival, you may be interested to know how it all started.
In 1997, local businessman and former Councillor Mike Pusey, along with Keith Darlington of KDE and Mark Avis of Mavis Plant Hire felt Frodsham should have Christmas lights. Frodsham Town Council backed them and funded a string of lights from Barclays Bank to The Old Hall. The Silver Brass Band played, and Mike did a countdown with a megaphone for the first switch on with about 100 on-lookers. Three years later the lights were extended along Main Street and by year 5, Church Street was lit up too. By 2004 the event had become so popular that a Parade was introduced, with tractors and trailers provided by local businesses and farms, and in 2012 the event changed from a Friday to a Saturday.
In 2019 the lights were changed to LED sets, and in 2020 the present imitation Christmas tree was donated by a group of local business men, saving money on a yearly tree.
The Festival is manned by volunteers who work all year arranging bookings, road closures, traffic management, waste disposal, site plans for stages and attractions. A First Aider and a CPSO are provided. The Festival is financed by grants and part funded by Frodsham Town Council and the generosity of local sponsors.
This year the popuar Independant Street Artisan Market joined in, with stalls along Main Street selling delicious food and Christmas gifts. There was a festive dog walk and Spirit of the Herd brought ponies to pet. The life size Snow Globe in the Parish Hall was very busy with prebooked tickets to eliminate queues as was Father Christmas’s Grotto, where each child received a gift. The Library hosted storytelling, and the Leisure Centre hosted a very busy food court and gift market. From the three stages, local talent entertained, thanks was given to the generous sponsors and Local Hero Awards introduced. Our fantastic community choir Frodsham Sings performed and then with Matt Baker led a Christmas sing-song before the traditional 6pm switch on signaled the start of the Parade through
the town, with an appearance at the end by Father Christmas waving from his sleigh.
With enthusiasm, hard work and commitment from volunteers plus financial support, it just shows how a chat with three friends can grow to an extravaganza that draws thousands of visitors to our special town. Happy Christmas to all!!
If you would like to give financial or organisational support or to help on the day, please get in touch on the website www.christmasinfrodsham.com in order to keep this magical event for our community.