Bad luck fears over Christmas lights

THE superstitious amid Sutton's residents could be forgiven for feeling a little jumpy – the council's Christmas lights are still up and some are even illuminated.

A fortnight after Twelfth Night, festive bulbs remain in places including Mere Green Road in Four Oaks, and Mill Street in the town centre.

Mere Green Road, which leads to a metal Christmas tree on a traffic island, has several displays attached to lampposts on both sides of the street.

Two blink into life each night, continuing to bring brightly coloured lights to Sutton at the end of January.

Several residents have contacted the Observer to complain about both the delay in removing the decorations and the drain on resources.

They also point out that tradition says it is bad luck to leave Christmas decorations on show after January 5, also known as Twelfth Night, which marks the 12 days between Christmas and Epiphany.

At the start of the month, one local authority announced that it would honour tradition and remove lights promptly.

Northampton Borough Council confirmed that its action was designed to save the town from bad luck.

The lights remain locally as the Observer reports two bad luck stories in Mere Green this week.

On the front page there is an account of a hairdresser who impaled himself on ladders, while on page five, factory bosses announce that their plant in Mere Green Road is to close.

A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said that it was common for lights to remain after Christmas because there were hundreds of displays in need of removal.

As the Observer went to press, the council had not responded to queries as to why some of the lights were still being illuminated.