Celebrities turn on the Trafford Centre lights

Published:  25 October, 2010

A host of celebrities including chart-topping Olly Murs and fellow X-factor contestant Jamie ‘Afro’ Archer will be unveiling the Christmas lights display at the Trafford Centre, Manchester, this week.    

There will also be performances from Peter Pan A Musical Adventure - with Coronation Street star Brian Capron starring as Captain Hook – and a gala screening of the new Narnia film with Georgie Henley and other members of the cast in attendance. Shoppers will have the chance to win a VIP trip on board Dawn Treader, the ship used in the film.

The Christmas decorations include 30,000 baubles sourced from Finland, some of which use animatronics to open and close, 6,500 jewels, and a quarter of a million low energy light bulbs which use just a third of the electricity of the old ones.

Gordon McKinnon, director of operations from the Trafford Centre, said: "The whole evening will be a fantastic night out for families of all ages, there is something for everyone on the bill. The new Christmas lights have been a considerable investment for The Trafford Centre this year, as we know how important they are to our customers, who travel from all over the country to see them. And after many years of white decorative lighting, this year we've returned to traditional multi-coloured lights throughout the malls, which we’re sure our customers are going to love.”

All this comes as the centre prepares to open Ted Baker, Blacks and Foot Asylum in November.

Ted Baker will open a 2,900 sq ft temporary store on November 19. The store will close for 10 weeks in the New Year to start work on their permanent shop fit, due to open for trading at the beginning of March.

Harvey Nichols, M&S and Carluccio’s will be opening pop-up stores between now and mid-January.