This Christmas for the first time, more than a million Christmas lights were lit simultaneously – on 20 famous streets of West London. This is the biggest simultaneous ignition of Christmas Street lights to ever take place on the planet.
Traditionally, the Christmas lights on London’s streets are turned on at different times. But this year City Hall decided to do it all at once.
A press statement from the mayor’s office explained that this was done for security reasons so that not too many people would gather in one place at one time.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan came in person to join the ceremony in Piccadilly Circus. After a ten-second countdown, electric garlands in the form of angels, snowflakes and other figures were lit in Oxford Street, Regent Street, Bond Street, Piccadilly Circus, Mayfair and other world-famous London streets.
The mayor’s office stressed that all Christmas lights this year use the latest LED technology, which provides energy savings of up to 75% compared to conventional lighting.
“We have lit more lights today than have ever been lit in any city in the world”, Sadik Khan told reporters.
He reflected on 18 months of the pandemic and its dire effects on business in London’s West End, where world-class shops, restaurants and theaters are located.
“This year, Christmas is a message of hope, optimism and positiveness. It is also a message to the whole world that London is open. We recovered from bombing, plague, fires, and we will recover from (COVID-19 pandemic),” Khan said.
