Bristol couple's home becomes Christmas wonderland with 28,000 lights

02 December 2023 , 10:06

639     0

Ian and Ann Cooper transform their property in Bristol into a Christmas light show for the month of December (Image: No credit)

A couple have lit up their home with a whopping 28,000 bulbs saying it's "what Christmas is all about".

Ian and Ann Cooper started planning for their annual 'Cooper's Light Show' a year in advance. Mr Cooper, 57, revealed that he began preparing for this year's display on Boxing Day last year.

From December 1, "up to 100 people a day" visit the couple's Andover Road property in Bristol to watch the colourful lights timed to Christmas music. The four-hour long display each night has become a local tradition. Mr Cooper places "28,000 lights" around his property, some even spilling onto his neighbour's fence, to "give back to society" and see "other people enjoying themselves".

Lighting the home costs a lot but the couple even it out by not using the kettle in the evenings (Copyright remains with handout provider)

"We have kids dancing on the driveway, it's just absolutely amazing it's what Christmas is about," said bus driver Mr Cooper. "We take so much pleasure in seeing other people enjoy themselves."

He added that while he does the positioning and wiring for the display, 61-year-old Ann, who works for a private medical repatriation company, is "more of the artistic type" and sequences the lights to the music.

Gales, snow and rain to batter country today with 80mph wind gusts

"We run for the whole month of December and we'll get anything from up to 100 people a night," he said. "The sequencing and planning will start in January, although last year it was Boxing Day."

Mr Cooper reckons the cost of running the display is about £95 a month, but if he doesn't boil the kettle once a night, it "costs nothing". "I reckon, including the snow machine, for the whole month of December it costs around £90 to £95," he explained.

"When you think, that's like boiling the kettle once a night, so if I don't boil the kettle once a night, it costs me nothing." He added, "I think £95, that's me giving back my bit to society."

The incredible display is made up of 28,000 lights (Copyright remains with handout provider)

The Coopers also put on a Halloween-themed display every year, featuring lights in the shape of spiders and cobwebs which they then replace with snowflakes and holly leaves in the run-up to Christmas. The couple have also become foster parents to a seven year old boy and Mr Cooper said he was in charge of turning on the lights for Friday's big switch-on.

"For the first year at Christmas we're going to have a youngster with us so that's going to be exciting and he loves it," Mr Cooper added. "The main switch-on on Friday, I'll get him to do it."

This year's light display, which runs from 5pm to 9pm every night, is a fundraiser for the Great Western Air Ambulance Charity. Donations will be collected from visitors each night.

Mr Cooper said: "It's one of those charities that you hope you never need but it's nice to know it's there in case you do. We just want to raise as much money as possible so they can keep up the good work." To learn more, visit their Facebook page here.

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

Susie Beever