PLANS for a County Durham town's Christmas festival are well under way and promise to be bigger than ever.
The theme of Barnard Castle's £16,000 Christmas festival is Christmas Magic and will boast a Son-et-Lumiere display, street entertainers and even a novelty singing reindeer.
The festival begins at 6pm on Friday, December 5, when town mayor Councillor John Yarker will switch on the Christmas tree lights, in Galgate.
The main festival is on December 13. Events begin at Scar Top with entertainment by musicians, jugglers and fire-eaters. The traditional lantern procession begins at 5pm from St Mary's Parish Church and is expected to arrive at Scar Top at 5.30pm, where there will be the first North-East performance of Sigmund the Singing Reindeer. There will also be a visit by Santa at 6.30pm.
The Son-et-Lumiere display, which explores the history of the castle using theatrical lighting, music, narration and fireworks, takes place at 7.30pm and is expected to finish at 8pm.
Throughout the day, there will be a Christmas craft fair, and a farmers' market in the town. Many shops are expected to stay open until 8pm. Admission to the event is free.
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