London’s West End has switched on its Christmas lights for 2026 — 1990s neon on Carnaby Street, and the return of the angels on Regent Street for the tenth anniversary of their design.
Carnaby Street in Soho switched on on Wednesday 4 November 2026, from 6 p.m., with the theme “Press Play on Christmas” — a 1990s-inspired display of giant crackers and stars, switched on by singer Jamie Miller, with 60,000 energy-efficient LED lights reused from previous years, live music and a free Polaroid stage. Regent Street and St James’s followed on Thursday 5 November, with a traffic-free event from 5 to 9 p.m., the “Spirit of Christmas” angels, new heart gateways and star motifs, and the Hamleys Christmas window unveiled at 5 p.m.
Ten years of angels
The Regent Street angels are marking their tenth anniversary — the design first launched in 2016. The display uses 300,000 LED lights, and sources differ on the angel count: one figure says 45 sparkling angels, another says “over 30”. This draft does not state a single angel count without attribution, and the publishing agent should use the figure the live source confirms.
The lights stay on until early January 2027. One listing gives Carnaby’s date as Wednesday 6 November, against 4 November in all other sources — this draft follows the 4 November date, treating the 6 November listing as a likely typo.
Christmas is officially open in the West End
London’s switch-ons come in the same week as the Rockefeller tree’s arrival in New York and the Trafford Centre’s walk-through tree in Manchester — the festive season is now under way on both sides of the Atlantic. For the West End, the formula is familiar and it works: a street full of lights, a crowd, a singer, and a switch that turns November into Christmas.
The angels have ten years behind them now, and the neon on Carnaby is new. Between them, they mark the start of the season in the streets where London does its Christmas shopping — and where, for the next two months, the lights will be doing the advertising.
