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Stars to shine at this year’s Christmas Lights Switch On

The countdown to Christmas is officially on – as The Rock shopping centre announces the date and line-up for this year’s big switch on event.

The shopping and leisure destination is promising a star line-up and star prizes to mark the first year of its brand new ‘Starry Night’ themed decorations.

The ‘Be a Rock Star’ Christmas Lights Switch On will take place on Thursday 7th November where  Sid Sloane from CBeebies’ and Manchester musician Max George will take to the stage for the event.

This year will see a brand new decorations installation at the centre, all following a star theme with a stunning display of light promising to get us all in the Christmas spirit.

The event, hosted by The Rock and Hits Radio, will run from 5:00pm until 7:00pm and will also feature groups from the Carol Godby Theatre Workshop and of course an appearance from Santa himself.

Sid Sloane is best known for presenting to pre-schoolers and parents nationwide on the CBeebies channel. He has been with CBeebies since its inception in 2002 and is the channel’s only original presenter. Sid loves to perform live and is well known for his show ‘Let’s Play’.

Max George was part of the boyband The Wanted, whose hits include ‘All Time Low’.  Last year Max released his first solo single ‘Barcelona’. The song has more than seven million streams. On May 24, 2019 he released his second single ‘Better On Me’.

On the night there’s some star prizes up for grabs, in the centre’s Be a Rock Star competition.

Visitors are encouraged to arrive early for the event and find the Hits Radio street team to find out how to enter the competition.

They need to bring their mobile phone – it’s key to being able to enter AND must stick around the duration of the event.

There’ll be tickets up for grabs for Hits Radio Live which takes place on 17th November and features some of the biggest names in pop – plus there’ll be a star studded £500 spending spree prize  for the main winner, the perfect way to kick off the festive season.

The switch on event is free to attend and marks the beginning of the Christmas season for The Rock. The centre’s Santa’s Grotto will officially open on Saturday 23rd November following the Santa’s Arrival parade in the morning and The Rock Express will return in December to transport festive shoppers around the town until the end of the month.

The Rock’s centre director, Arnold Wilcox-Wood, said: “The Rock’s Christmas Lights Switch On is one of the centre’s and the town’s biggest events of the year and this year will be no exception. We’re pulling out all the stops to make sure this event gets everyone in the festive spirit. With new Christmas decorations, a star line up and star prizes, we’re all looking forward to a great night and we can’t wait to welcome you all.”