Lichfield Cathedral – Announcement

Lichfield Cathedral has today made the difficult decision to move The Cathedral Illuminated sound and light show to an OUTSIDE ONLY event with immediate effect in order to keep people safe in light of the rising covid infection rates.

Keeping people safe this Christmas: Announcement from Lichfield Cathedral

Lichfield Cathedral has today made the difficult decision to move The Cathedral Illuminated sound and light show to an OUTSIDE ONLY event with immediate effect in order to keep people safe in light of the rising covid infection rates.

The Cathedral Illuminated: The Manger, created by Luxmuralis, opens today (Thursday 16- 22 Dec) and will still go ahead BUT will now be an outdoor experience only.

The Dean of Lichfield, The Very Revd Adrian Dorber said:

“Christmas is such a special time for us all as we prepare to celebrate with our loved ones. As a team at the Cathedral, we have been watching the news as it develops. We’ve been making plan after plan for various eventualities so that people can enjoy the time leading up to Christmas whilst also keeping our visitors, volunteers and staff as safe as possible.
 
“We know that this new variant of COVID is highly infectious but much less likely to spread in wide outdoor spaces. So, the decision has been made to keep the event outside, still with the same projections and outdoor experience but without the added risk of moving people into an indoor space where there is much greater risk. No-one wants to be isolating over Christmas.
 
“The show, created by the artistic collaboration Luxmuralis, is still going to be the spectacular outdoor light and sound our visitors have come to expect. There will be stunning projections on the Palace and front of the Cathedral as always. Visitors will still be able to come back to see the Christmas Tree Festival and Crib Scene in their own time, up to and past Christmas, as part of the regular free visitor entry to the Cathedral.”

Peter Walker from the artistic collaboration Luxmuralis, who have produced this show for the last five years at the Cathedral, said:

“To have to change the plans for the Cathedral Illuminated this year at the last moment has not been taken lightly. We fully support the decisions that the Cathedral has made to make sure that the public are safe. I would like to thank my team and colleagues for the dedication over the past several months, working tirelessly to put together this show, and although we cannot present the whole experience, visitors will still be able to enjoy the exterior illuminations that have brought joy to so many for the last few years, accompanied by the uplifting and beautiful music of my colleague David Harper.”

In light of the change, the Cathedral has updated its refund policy to allow for refunds in advance of the ticket time. Visitors will be notified on the gate (before ticket scanning) of the change in the nature of the event. Refunds can be requested before Christmas but, as the Cathedral operates with a very small staff team, refunds will be processed in the new year.

The Dean of Lichfield added:

“I would very much like to invite you to enjoy this wonderful Cathedral Illuminated experience and perhaps also attend one of the special Advent services in the lead up to Christmas. This Saturday (18 December) we have three carol services around the Christmas tree outside the Cathedral(14:00, 15:00 and 16:00) for you to come and sing your favourite carols and get into the festive spirit. Please do visit the website to find out what else is planned for the Christmas season.