Judging The Shire Illuminations.

I was advised today to go and look at Mr and Mrs Coxon’s external Christmas lights, since I’d expressed commendation for the shimmering blue cascade at Rose Mount. Tonight I did. Heavens.

Mr and Mrs C live on a lane that I don’t usually walk at night, which is why I hadn’t seen it before. They live in a big bungalow with a sizeable amount of well tended land, bisected by a driveway, sloping down to the road. How should I describe the display laid out across the two capacious lawns?

Remember the post ‘The Shire in the Desert?’ Well, given the context of their relative locations, this was truly Las Vegas. There were Santas on sleds, Santas throwing snowballs, kids on bikes, kids swinging on trees, reindeer, a train, two shimmering Christmas trees, and lots more that I don’t remember. And high up in one of the mature trees there was a flashing star, no doubt in token acknowledgement of the religious connection.

For sheer brashness it would take some beating, and it certainly has no peer in The Shire. I’ve no doubt it can be seen from space, and I wonder whether they informed air traffic control at EMA to preclude the possibility of the odd Boeing or two trying to land thirty miles too soon.

So hats off to Mr and Mrs Coxon who definitely take No.1 spot this year. This is one impressed little hobbit, although I do wonder whether they were responsible for the short power outage we had a few nights ago. As for the cost, well...