The countdown to Christmas officially began at Longleat on Friday night (5th November) as Lord and Lady Bath turned on the Christmas lights for an evening of festive magic.

The new event, ‘Christmas at Longleat’, features Britain’s biggest singing Christmas tree with a trail of merry lights sparkling with music and wonder.

Lord and Lady Bath took to the steps of Longleat house to pronounce the event open with the crowd counting down before multiple Christmas trees illuminated and a festive display was projected onto the front of the stately home.

After taking in the magic of the synchronised light display, wander through the Christmas light trail and discover a love labyrinth decorated with neon love hearts, shimmering disco balls and twinkling lights – you might even bump into Santa and his elves on the way!

Next, you’ll find a giant all singing, all dancing Christmas tree covered in more than 88,000 lights and fitted with four snow-making machines. As the music plays and snow starts to fall, Santa took to the sky to make sure all the children were on their best behaviour.

But the festive fun doesn’t end there, visitors can also ride on Santa trains, hear festive stories told with the help of flying owls, watch live Christmas shows, a synchronised light and sound display on the front of Longleat House, and a host of other Christmas surprises.

Longleat’s Steve Mytton said, “Christmas is a great time for families and friends to get together and enjoy themselves. Our Christmas events have become something of an institution in recent years.

“This year’s event features a host of festive attractions from the spectacular light projection on Longleat House and our giant singing Christmas Tree, to the magical A Flight Before Christmas storytelling sessions featuring flying owls and our hugely popular Santa Trains.

“There’s also the added appeal of the safari park and all our other attractions to make it a full day out.”