You’ll be able to enjoy all the joy of Christmas – including singing carols – when the final Berwick Advent Window is opened on Christmas Eve at 6pm at The Parade, Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Northumberland County Council has given the greenlight for a drive-in celebration of Christmas as part of Berwick’s Advent Window Trail. The pre-ticketed free event (order tickets by emailing berwickcribservice@gmail.com) will take place in the town’s Parade Car Park – between the Parish Church and the Church of Scotland at 6pm on Thursday 24th December.
As well as the opening of the final Advent window, families will be able to join a crib-style service of the Christmas story and carols from the safety and comfort of their cars. The fun service is a joint production from many local churches and will present all the warmth, love and hope of the traditional Christmas story of the birth of Jesus – including angels, shepherds, wise men – streamed on a large screen erected in The Parade car park. And because they’ll be in their own cars, those who attend will be able to do something that churchgoers have missed out on for most of this year: sing together.
Those who cannot attend by car can enjoy the experience of the service and the opening of the final window from their homes (visit the Parish Church website and the Parish Church’s YouTube channel) – and the window will be in situ until the New Year along with the rest of the Advent Window Trail round the town.
If you wish to attend the drive-in event, don’t forget to pre-book your ticket by emailing berwickcribservice@gmail.com
Further information available from:
Rev’d Tom Sample: 01289 298521 or Rev’d Tracey Usher on: 01289 783083
This year windows around Berwick are lighting up with the timeless themes of Christmas: love, joy, fun, thankfulness and celebration.
Christmas 2020 is set to be different and probably quite challenging for many. The creation of Berwick’s very own real-time Advent calendar in windows around the town offers residents and visitors the opportunity to mark the days to Christmas in an entertaining and safe way.
Twenty-three shops, businesses, private houses – and even the Police Station – will host an Advent window. Each window will be ‘opened’ during December – one a day from Tuesday 1st December through to Wednesday 23rd. And there will be a touch of extra drama on Christmas Eve when the final window is opened.
Schools, churches, businesses, community groups and property owners will all be involved in the decoration and creation of the windows. The themes for the windows are inspired by Christmas songs and carols. Each window will have a visual link to Berwick in the design.
‘Away in a Manger’ by Holy Trinity School in the window of Foxton’s Wine Bar on Hide Hill
Window dressers have agreed to keep their displays in situ until the New Year – so there will be plenty of time to enjoy the full Advent Trail.
Children’s Competition
As well as enjoying the fun and spectacle of the windows, children can enter a competition to spot the Berwick link in each window. There’ll be prizes for winners in the age groups 3 to 7 years and 8 to 12 years. You can pick up an entry form from many of the participating retailers around town.
‘Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer’ by Tweedmouth West School in the window of Robertson’s on West Street
The Maltings’ Christmas Light Show
It’s been a tough year for the arts across the country and Berwick’s own wonderful arts centre The Maltings is no exception. The Maltings is presenting its own Christmas light projection on the Theatre buildings as part of the Advent Trail. The Maltings is also streaming last year’s sell-out Panto ‘Aladdin’ on youtube here and ‘Christmas with the Hobs’ (details here)
The Unveiling of the Advent Windows
Date
Venue
Theme
Artists
December 1st
Jennie’s Wool Studio, Bridge St.
‘Winter Wonderland’
Host
December 2nd
Foxton’s Wine Bar, Hyde Hill
‘Away in a Manger’
Holy Trinity School
December 3rd
Robertson’s, West St.
‘Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer’
Tweedmouth West School
December 4th
Longbones, Walkergate
‘God Rest ye Merry Gentlemen’
Host
December 5th
Thistle do Nicely, Walkergate
‘Mary’s Boy Child’:
St Mary’s School
December 6th
Berwick Community Trust, William Elder, Castlegate
‘Good King Wenceslas’
Methodist Church
December 7th
Berwick Visitor Centre, Walkergate
‘We Three Kings’
Host
December 8th
Castlegate Pharmacy
‘I Saw Three Ships’
Host
December 9th
Woolmarket Antiques
‘I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas’
Host
December 10th
Geek Hut, Guildhall Alley
‘Let it Snow’
Spittal First School
December 11th
Lime Shoe Company, Marygate
‘Little Donkey’
Host
December 12th
Under the Clock Cafe, Guildhall Alley
‘It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas’
Host
December 13th
1 Castlegate
‘Once in Royal David’s City’
Host
December 14th
Pictorial Photography, Quayside
‘Ding, Dong Merrily on High’
Host
December 15th
Greaves West & Ayre, Walkergate
‘Jingle Bells’
Host
December 16th
Gemini Jewellers, Marygate
‘It Came Upon a Midnight Clear’
Host
December 17th
1 Greenside Ave
Host
December 18th
Police Station, Church St.
‘Silent Night’
Holy Trinity School
December 19th
Edwin Thompson, Hyde Hill
‘The Holly and the Ivy’
The Camera Club
December 20th
Playtime, Marygate
‘Santa Clause is coming to Town’
Host
December 21st
Newcastle Building Society, Hyde Hill
‘Little Drummer Boy’
Host
December 22nd
SpecSavers, Marygate
‘We wish you a Merry Christmas!’
Host
December 23rd
Baptist Church, Golden Square.
‘O Little Town of Bethlehem’
Host
December 24th
Parade Car Park
‘In the Bleak Midwinter’
Host
The organisers and supporters – thank yous!
The small group which has organised the project would like to say a big ‘Thank you!’ to all who have helped and supported this project: to those who have lent their windows; to those who have agreed to help decorate windows; to Stephen Scott and The Chamber of Trade; to all in the Tourist Information Centre; and to those involved in the Welcome Visitor Project. Without all this support the Advent Windows Trail would not have been possible.
Border Lines 