The Boldmere Christmas Festival 2024 with Christmas Lights Switch on took place on Sunday 17th November 2024 from 1pm to 6pm with the Christmas Lights being switched on by Boldmere’s elite Commonwealth medal winning gymnast Hamish Carter.
Thank you to over 6,000 of you who turned out in the rain and for your entrance donations of £6,404. This helps us to keep running these events every year as without the generosity of the Boldmere Community, we would not have sufficient funds to cover all of our £20,000 costs. The event is not-for-profit run by Boldmere Futures CIC and any surpluses are used to cover losses for other festivals or are re-allocated to other Boldmere community projects. Summer 2025 will see the arrival of Bulls in the City in “Bulldmere” and your donations will help make this project happen.
We were blown away with the enthusiasm and professionalism of all our volunteers. Our volunteers, including core organising team, contributed a total of 337 hours on the day of the festival. If calculated at £15 an hour, that’s a massive £5,055 of voluntary contributions. This does not include the many voluntary hours that are given to help plan the festival, clean gazebos and dry out equipment. We are particularly grateful to Boldmere Sea Cadets and Royal Marine Cadets for lending us their heated storage facility and for taking the time to dry out all of the gazebos. If you would like to volunteer for any of our festivals, please visit www.boldmere.org/volunteer
Watch the videos below of children enjoying the Bumper Carz, Carols with Real Life Church, losing your marbles with The Black Jeans, the Christmas Lights switch-on and of course the snow!
| 1:00 – 1:30 | Sutton Coldfield Musical Theatre Company Live songs from Annie. |
| 1:45 – 2:15 | Banners Gate (Carrieann Hathaway X Harry Daniels) Local acoustic duo. Champions of North Birmingham’s open mic community. |
| Christie Reeves Local singer songwriter entwining haunting folk music with pop ballads. |
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| 3:15 – 4:00 | Rockin’ Carols from Real Life Church Local musicians of Real Life Church performing rocking Christmas Carols. |
| 4:15 – 5:00 | The Black Jeans Local trio of indie rockers kicking out energetic covers. |
| 5:05 – 5:15 | Andi Markham the Puppet Man with his friends Jack and Grandad. |
| 5:15 – 5:25 | Christmas Lights Switch-on with Boldmere’s very own Commonwealth Bronze Medal winning gymnast Hamish Carter |
| 5:25 – 5:30 | From the Top Theatre Company Extract from Goldilocks and the 3 Bears being performed at Highbury Theatre. |
| 5:30 – 6:00 | DJ Phat Tony X Dinky Sax Sutton’s Saxophonist Becky Tangry performing alongside the party vibes of DJ Phat Tony. |
The funfair included:
- Ferris Wheel
- Mini Dodgems
- Fun House
- Helter Skelter
- Planes ride
- Cup and saucer ride
- Bungee trampolines
- Roundabout
- Hook-a-Duck
Special attracitons included:
- Helipod (real shell of a decomissioned helicopter) from Midlands Air Ambulance
- Fire appliance from Erdington Fire Station, Technical Response Unit and Road Safety Unit with Virtual Reality road safety goggles (subject to operational requirements)
- New Children and Family area at the car wash next to RotoSpa
Street food included:
Hot and savoury food:
- Caroline’s Tea Bus serving afternoon tea in an air conditioned double decker bus
- Hot turkey, beef rolls, yorkshire pudding wraps and luxury hot chocolate from K and N Catering
- Dirty Fries & Nachos from The Scran Box
- German sausages including Classic German Bratwurst, Smoked Krakauer, Cheese Krakauer, Chilli Beef, Footlong Bratwurst and Traditional Pork Sausages from O & T Catering
- Chinese style chicken & vegetable noodles from O & T Catering with sides including vegetable spring rolls, prawn crackers, and Curry, Sweet n’ Sour or Black Bean sauces
- Gourmet Burgers from O & T Catering
- Wood fired Pizza from Jockey Road based Cart & Carriage Events
- Freshly cooked barbecue meat from Paul’s BBQ
- Traditional Caribbean food including boneless jerk chicken, curried goat, rice & peas, fresh salad, plantains, fluffy festival dumplings, rum cake, scones and Caribbean-inspired jams from Boldmere’s own Bambu Garden
- Freshly cooked Jacket Potatoes from DC Events Catering
- Mediterranean Greek Grill from Souvlaki to Go
For the sweet tooth:
- Variety of fruit crumbles served with custard, whipped cream or ice cream from The Crumble Hut
- Cinnamon Christmas tree biscuits from Sutton Park Grange Care Home which can be decorated in aid of Alzheimer’s Society
- Artisan hanmade gourmet & vegan doughnuts and New York based cheesecake from Divine Doughnuts
- Churros with melted Belgian hot chocolate from The Fabulous Food Guys
- Homemade sourdough bread and treats from Boldmere’s very own Baked in Boldmere
- Luxury handmade bakes, brownies, NYC stuffed cookies, cupcakes and brownie jars from Bakes for your Soul
- Homemade tray bake cakes from Becky’s Bakes
- Gourmet chocolate brownies, flapjack, rocky road and brownie balls with vegan and gluten free options from Chocolate Treats
- Stuffed cookies topped and bursting with the most loved flavours and treats from Stuffed Bakes
- Macarons, cakesicles and traybakes from F1lo
- Anca’s Sweet Bakery – homemade chocolate fudge
- Ice cream van with desserts from Only Foods and Drinks
- Alcohol infused bakes including chocolate chip whisky cookies with a chocolate whisky ganache, rum cookies, vodka cookies, amaretto & cream liqueur cookies from Lizzie’s Cookies
Other food:
- A range of pies handmade in Melton Mowbrary from Brockleby’s Pies
- Handmade, additive free chutneys, jams, marmalades, ketchups and mustards (most vegan and gluten free) from Springfield Kitchen
- Scotch Bonnet Jelly, chilli sauces and seasoning from Frank & Co
- Local honey and other hive products from Monmouth Drive based Brummie Honey
- Olives and sea food peppers from Feinkost
Drinks:
- The Krazee Horse Bar including draft Bavarian beers, ales, draft Rattler Cornish Cider (ABV 4.8), Prosecco and cocktails
- Bottles of Wine, Prosecco, Champagne and Spirits to take away from the Classic Wine Company
- Handcrafted bottled cocktails and shots to take away as Christmas presents from Irrhysistible Drinks
- Beers on tap from The Pavilions (owners of The Lounge) pop-up bar
Plus there were over 50 Christmas market stalls and your favourite Boldmere shops.
Brought to you by:
Main stage sponsors:
With financial support from:
Community Grants Fund
We Need Your Help!
If you would be able to help us with the Community Festivals, in the days leading up to them, setting them up and setting them down, or during the festivals themselves, then please visit our volunteer page to complete a short application form.
We provide snacks and water to all volunteers and for those who stay at the event for longer than 5 hours we will provide a hot meal voucher too. You will receive a full volunteer information pack before the day and a briefing on the day.
