Regent Street Has Turned On Their Christmas Lights For 2022

November is about the time everything usually goes from just a little bit festive to Festive As F*ck, Regent Street included. And this year the good folks of Regent Street are bringing Christmas cheer to Soho by the bucketload with the return of their beautiful Christmas light display. They’ve flipped the switch and the lights are once again shining over the central London streets. That’s right, you can see the Regent Street Christmas lights now!

Known as ‘The Spirits of Christmas’, Regent Street’s Christmas lights display is one of the largest in the country (behind such luminary behemoths as the Kew Gardens Christmas lights trail), and has a proud history dating all the way back to its debut in 1954. In fact, Regent Street actually started the whole tradition of public Christmas lights in the capital. That’s definitely something to be thankful for! The spirits – which played trumpets in the original display but now soar triumphantly above shoppers – feature some 300,000 low-energy twinkling LED lights, and provide an iconic sight during the festive season. You’ll also find sparkling spirits hovering about St James’s as another part of the dazzling display.

The canopy of lights features 45 magical ‘spirits’ all in all, which turns any bus trip up Regent Street into a dazzling experience. This year, they’re also keeping their thoughts with eco-consciousness, by not keeping the display permanently illuminated. Instead, the spirits will light up between 3pm-11pm each day, to lessen their impact.

Christmas really is well and truly on the way. You’ll have to be prepared, if you want to take advantage of everything! Fortunately, we’re keeping track of everything festive that’s in the works this year – from restaurant and rooftop igloos to delightfully festive ice skating rinks, and everything in between. There’s even a delightfully gaudy and kitschy Christmas bar takeover on the way.

Also published on Medium.