BRIGG BLOG REFLECTS ON THE LAUNCH OF THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS 2019

With an estimated 2,000 people out and about in Brigg town centre for the Christmas lights switch on and District Lions' festive fair & market on Friday evening (November 29) there was potential for a considerable amount of litter to be generated, ranging from unsuccessful raffle tickets to fast food trays and plastic bottles.
Several years ago we recall photographing one litter bin in the Market Place which was full to overflowing BEFORE the lights even came on.
Most people are public spirited and look to utilise litter bins to dispose of their unwanted items, but clearly this can't happen if the bins are full.
So we were pleased to note the same bin being emptied about 7.30pm on Friday, along with others in the town centre (see picture below).
The following morning a town centre litter-picking session was arranged to help keep Brigg tidy.

We were in the town centre by 4.15pm on Friday, having accepted the Town Council and Town Mayor's kind invitation to attend the traditional soiree in the Angel Suite Lounge, with light refreshments.

Annie Fanny and other cast members from the Scunthorpe pantomime called in, as did the Mayor of North Lincolnshire Coun Jon Evison, and Coun Carl Sherwood, one of the Brigg & Wolds Ward representatives on North Lincolnshire Council as well as being a town councillor.
Guests were welcomed by Town Mayor Coun Sharon Riggall, Deputy Mayor Coun Brian Parker, Town Clerk Dinah Lilley and Assistant Town Clerk Kerry McGrath.
 

Scunthorpe panto star Annie Fannie, right, fellow cast members... and Santa.

The switch-on ceremony at 5pm, performed on the temporary stage in the Market Place, had a new feature this year - a red button (pictured above) being pressed to bring the illuminations to life.
We undertook several circuits of the town centre, from the Market Place to the Britannia Inn, over a three-hour period.
 

Among our first ports of call were Paul Keane's La Finca Spanish-themed restaurant in the Angel building (above) which was busy serving tapas as part of a Sampler Night, and the new Jerry Green Dog Rescue charity shop, on Springs Parade, which had opened its doors for the first time just a few hours earlier. 

  

The new Jerry Green Dog Rescue shop opened on Friday - ahead of the Christmas illuminations being switched on.

We spoke to Stephen Hill, the illustrator, above, who had a stall in the Angel Suite displaying some of his impressive prints of Brigg scenes;  ex-Mayor Tony Glossop, who was helping to man the family cake stall on Wrawby Street; Ken Harrison, camera in hand, of Brigg Matters magazine; and Exchange manager Mark Burns, who was helping with the pop-up eatery located in the brick archway leading through to the 18th century venue. 
 

Mark Burns at the Exchange's pop-up eatery. Note the steam rising from the trays; the tops had to be on so we could take the picture!

On the other side of Wrawby Street, Deli Diner proprietor Parris Watson and his staff were doing their best to cope with queues of people waiting for hot burgers and other snacks,  served outside the premises.
 

Parris Watson, left, supervising operations outside his premises on Wrawby Street.

Some people who live out of town and came to Brigg by car got their first look at the metal archways recently erected at the entrance to some of the courtyards off Wrawby Street as they made their way to and from the Old Courts Road car park.
 

Some also passed the Tree of Light, above, with many messages already attached to its branches in memory of loved ones now no longer with us.
Click here for details of how to add your card to the tree...
There were outdoor stalls stretching from the Market Place along Wrawby Street almost as far as Cross Street, and indoor ones in the Angel Suite and St John's Church Hall.
Brigg Town Council organises and funds the Christmas lights, which will stay on well into the New Year. The bulbs used are LED - consuming much less electricity than traditional types.
The Christmas tree, in the Market Place, was supplied by Scawby Estates, and the surrounding wooden safety fencing by long-established Earnshaws of Bridge Street.
 

We made a point of photographing the tree with the Buttercross in the background as this will be the 200th Christmas our landmark building has seen.
Constructed with support from the Elwes and Nelthorpe land and property-owning families, it opened in 1819 and today hosts the award-winning Brigg Tourist Information Centre on its ground floor.
The Buttercross after dark in December gives something of a Dickensian feel to this part of the town centre. However, our landmark pre-dates author Charles Dickens' famous work A Christmas Carol - not published until 1843.
Brigg in 1819 was pretty much restricted to the Market Place, Bigby Street, Elwes Street and Wrawby Street, plus adjoining courtyards and alleys, some properties on Bridge Street and the original school on what's now known as Grammar School Road.
In 1819 the County Bridge had yet to be built to replace a much earlier structure.
The Angel building was in evidence, then being a coaching inn but without its mock-Tudor frontage - a late Victorian addition.
We produced an illustrated report about Friday night's event for the Scunthorpe Telegraph's website at the weekend. View it through this link...

Youngsters enjoying Annie Fanny's on-stage performance.

Chris Smalley, centre, dispensing those ever-popular Dinky Donuts.

The new Jerry Green Dog Rescue charity shop, on Springs Parade - illuminated on the night the illuminations were switched on in Brigg town centre. Donations of items suitable for sale are being welcomed, in a very good cause.

Crowds in the Market Place, admiring the lights.

Illuminations near the landmark Buttercross, which opened in 1819.