Lyme Regis sparkles in gold and white Christmas display - Christmas lights 2025

The rain eased just in time for celebrations as a huge crowd gathered on Broad Street on Saturday evening to witness the magical switching-on of the town’s Christmas lights.

Earlier in the afternoon, more than 60 lanterns were created at the Christmas Lantern Workshop at the Baptist Church.

At 5pm the brilliant Lyme Regis Majorettes led the switch-on parade with an energetic routine, followed by Santa on his sleigh, who arrived to begin the official countdown. The children’s lantern procession followed behind.

As the countdown ended, Broad Street was transformed, glowing in a stunning gold-and-white Christmas display.

After the switch-on, the fabulous Blackdown Samba entertained the crowd in front of the Christmas tree, and Lyme Morris delighted the audience with their performance.

For those who may not know, the Lyme Regis Christmas lights are organised by a dedicated volunteer team led by chairman Rob James and supported by Karen Skardon James, Alan Vian, Annette Denning, Gilly Clark, Linda Peadon and other helpers plus the installation team of Steve Parsons and John King.

Rob James, chairman of the Lyme Regis Christmas Lights Committee, said:

“We were delighted to see such a huge crowd turn out for Saturday evening’s big switch-on, and the amount of positive feedback we’ve received makes the work of our small voluntary team feel so worthwhile.

“A special thanks to our primary sponsors — Dorset and Devon Holiday Cottages, Lyme Bay Holidays, SWIM, Rock Point Inn and Toad Hall Cottages — as well as all our amazing business supporters. Their names can be found at lymechristmaslights.co.uk/supporters.

“I’d like to give a big thank you to Steve Parsons and John King, our installation team, for doing such a great job putting up the lights, and to Karl of Regis Maintenance Service for his assistance. Thanks also to Lyme Regis Town Council for their continued support, to the road closure team, to all the volunteers who helped at the lantern workshop, and to those who held a collection bucket.

“We were thrilled that Santa was able to turn on the lights for us once again, and extend our thanks to Sarah and Neville Causley of the Lyme Regis Charity Sleigh for ensuring he arrived. Thank you also to Lyme Regis Majorettes, Lyme Morris and Blackdown Samba for their fantastic performances, and to the crew from Lyme Regis Fire Station for attending.

“Finally, a big thank you to Penn Farm Christmas Trees of Charmouth for donating the Christmas tree at Bell Cliff.”

You can support the hard work of the Christmas Lights Committee and help ensure Lyme sparkles in future years by purchasing raffle tickets at lymechristmaslights.co.uk/raffle, with fantastic prizes including cash and meals in local restaurants.