Getting ready for Amble’s Christmas lights and parade
You may be surprised when the Amble Christmas lights are switched on this year to see a display showing a spider’s web and spider.
Although it may seem more suitable for Halloween, in parts of Ukraine and Germany spiders and webs are traditional Christmas decorations. Often made from straw and hung in homes, they are said to bring good luck and prosperity for the coming year.
📷 Amble Christmas Lights
The decoration is inspired by the traditional Christmas spider legend, a folk tale that links spider webs with kindness, good fortune and the sparkle of tinsel.
Legend of the Christmas Spider
A destitute widow and her children lived in a cold hut. One day, a pinecone fell from the roof and took root, growing into a beautiful Christmas tree. The children were thrilled, but the widow wept because they had no money for ornaments.
The spiders living in the hut heard the mother’s cry and decided to help. Overnight, they crawled all over the tree, spinning intricate webs from branch to branch.
On Christmas morning, the first rays of sunlight touched the tree. The spiders’ webs instantly turned into glittering gold and silver. From that day, the family never lived in poverty again.
There are variations of the story, one being that St Nicholas (Father Christmas) visited the home with presents, smiled when he saw what the spiders had done and changed the web into gold and silver strands. Another that it was the baby Jesus.
And this is why we decorate our trees with tinsel today
Ray Newell
Amble Christmas Lights
Do you want to be in the parade?
Amble Christmas Parade and Lights switch-on will take place on Sunday 22 November. As usual, the parade will leave the Wellwood at 5pm and travel down Queen Street into the Town Square.
📷 Join the parade!
This year, the parade will feature music and dancing from Jack Drum Arts, and as usual, local community groups are encouraged to take part in the procession.
A spokesperson from Amble Events Committee said “This Christmas, Flocks & Shoals celebrates the joy and magic of coming together. Take inspiration from the Christmas story with hosts of angels or gatherings of shepherds, step into fairytale and fantasy, or look to nature and the sea with flocks of birds and shoals of fish. It’s a theme about gathering, belonging and celebrating together, with plenty of room to be festive, wintry, coastal, cultural, magical or fantastical. However you interpret it, think colour, light, movement and joy – and the wonderful things that happen when we come together.
“We’re inviting community groups, families, friends, schools and organisations to play their part, join the parade and light up the night in the Friendliest Port – because Christmas is brighter when we come together.”
Santa will once again drop in to meet local children in his grotto in the Harbour Village, while there will be stalls and entertainment in the Town Square.
Please let Julia Aston know if you’d like to join in the parade and she will assign your group a good place. Ring her on 01665 712929 or email julia@ambledevelopmenttrust.org.uk
