Wigan family's home dazzles with Christmas lights again to raise money for a good cause

Paul Molyneux has pulled out all the stops this December and expects visitors to travel from far and wide again to see the festive spectacle.

There are around 35,000 lights, a giant bear, 12 Christmas trees and a nativity scene outside the family’s home in Shevington.

Crowds turned out to see the display lit for the first time and visitors have been coming in their droves ever since.

Paul said: “They are bigger and better than normal. All the scaffolding is up with the lights on, which is different to what we normally do. There are about 35,000 lights in total.

“It has already survived a storm, nothing was destroyed. They took about four weeks to put up. I was busy doing that all November.”

Usually the decorations are put on the roof of the house, but Paul decided to do something different this time after breaking his wrist when he fell on the roof a few years ago.

He said: “I thought I would put up the scaffolding, leave it up and put the lights on the scaffolding.

“I wanted it to be like Oxford Street, with the lights draping down the shops. I didn’t realise I would need a further 8,000 lights.”

The display includes a large bear on a swing, a 10ft-tall Christmas tree and 11 smaller ones, and a nativity scene with a manger in a stable.

Paul, his wife Gill and their sons Ethan, 15, Alfie, 12, and Theo, 11, have seen their decorations become a popular local attraction over the past few years.

He said: “We get lorry drivers, taxi drivers, whoever is driving past, beeping their horns and it makes people smile. For some people, it has become a tradition to turn up on Christmas Eve with their children and see the lights.

“It puts a smile on kids’ faces, adults’ faces, everyone’s faces.”

As well as bringing festive joy, the decorations help a good cause, with people asked to give a donation to the Rainbow children’s ward at Wigan Infirmary.

Last year was the biggest money-spinner so far, with the £4,500 raised taking the total to more than £20,000 over the past seven years.

The family decided to support the hospital after their sons spent time there and have bought many things needed for the ward.

Paul said: “The kids help me to put out the decorations and they love it. They have been very fortunate that when they have needed it, they have been able to go to the Rainbow ward for treatment and they appreciate what it’s all about.

“They have done it for many years and they come with us when we drop off the gifts. It’s a big thing and they appreciate knowing the results of it.”

Lights at the family’s home on Shevington Lane in Shevington will be switched on from 4.30pm to 10.30pm each day.

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