Reading's Christmas Light Display

They say every picture tells a story. Reading's Christmas light display is brand-new for 2024 and celebrates Reading's unique history and heritage. Find out more about Reading’s new Christmas lights display... What are the stories behind the colourful centrepieces?

The Number 17 bus 
The very purple and legendary Number 17 bus has been plying the route from Tilehurst in the West to the Three Tuns in East Reading via the town centre since 1901. Well-known (and well-used) by the locals, the 17 has become a feature of the town. It runs 24/7 and at peak hours, every 9 minutes - and carries 23 million passengers a year. It has even had a beer named after it!

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A World in one Place
A detail from the Welcome to Oxford Road mural, commissioned by Reading Borough Council,  funded by the High Street Heritage Action Zone and designed by local graffiti artist Arron Lowe (AZUCIT).  Reading is a multicultural town that has welcomed people from around the world for centuries. These days nearly half its population is not white British.

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Abbey Quarter
Reading’s Abbey Quarter encompasses the site of the medieval abbey, which dates from the 12^th century, its modern-day ruins, the conserved Abbey Gateway, Forbury Gardens and the surrounding businesses, which are part of Reading’s Abbey Quarter BID. Image copyright Reading Museum (Reading Borough Council). All rights reserved.

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Banksy’s Create Escape
Banksy produced his Create Escape work on the wall of Reading Prison in 2021. It depicts a prisoner escaping using a rope made of bedsheets tied to a typewriter, possibly a reference to famous literary inmate Oscar Wilde who was jailed for homosexuality between 1895 and 1897. The artwork has attracted thousands of visitors since its creation.

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Bayeux Tapestry
The British Bayeux Tapestry is the only full-scale replica of the Norman original, chronicling the legendary tale of the Norman conquest of England, when William the Conqueror invaded and defeated King Harold.  Measuring 70 metres long, it was stitched by the Victorian ladies of Leek in Staffordshire but has resided in Reading Museum since 1895. Image copyright Reading Museum (Reading Borough Council). All rights reserved.

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Central Club mural 
The Pharaoh is a detail of the Black History Mural on the side of the former Central Club. The 36 metre long depiction illustrates local aspects of Black History alongside global icons like Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks and Bob Marley. It is broadly chronological starting at one end with some hieroglyphs and an image of the Pharaoh Akhenaten. The mural is designated an Asset of Community Value.

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Cheeselog
Nobody knows why, but the people of Reading call a woodlouse a cheeselog! Just one of numerous words and place names known only to residents of the ‘Ding... if you know, you know! According to the OED, the earliest known use of the noun cheeselog is in the mid-1600s. Other names for woodlice include armadillo bug, boat-builder, butcher boy and chisel pig. 

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Forbury Lion
The Maiwand Lion as it is more properly called sits in the middle of Forbury Gardens and celebrates those members of the Royal Berkshire Regiment who lost their lives at the Afghan Battle of Maiwand in 1880. The lion was sculpted by George Blackall Simonds who was part of the Reading based 'H & G Simonds Brewery', and unveiled in 1886.

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Huntley & Palmers Breakfast Biscuits
One of Reading’s famous 3Bs, at one point in the 19^th century, Huntley and Palmer’s Reading factory was the largest biscuit factory in the world. At its height, Huntley and Palmer employed over 4000 people in the town and created such famous biscuits as the Gem and Breakfast biscuits. Image copyright Reading Museum (Reading Borough Council). All rights reserved. 

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Jane Austen 
When she was just nine years old, the famed author Jane Austen, whose work includes the world-famous 'Pride and Prejudice', spent 18 months at school at Reading Ladies Boarding School, which had taken over the medieval Abbey Gateway in the late 18^th century.  In 2025, Reading will be celebrating her links to the town as part of the 250^th anniversary celebrations of her birth.

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King Henry I
King Henry I founded Reading Abbey in 1121. He was brought back to Reading from France to be buried there in 1136. Henry’s grave remains undiscovered but may be buried beneath other buildings in the Abbey Quarter. This image was created by local artist Martina Hildebrandt and is her interpretation of an 13^th century drawing of Henry I by a Benedictine monk.

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Oscar Wilde
The famed Irish playwright was imprisoned in Reading Gaol for homosexuality between 1895 and 1897. His cell, C.3.3, still stands in the now empty prison. He wrote one of his defining works, De Profundis, while in prison and the harsh conditions inspired him to write The Ballad of Reading Gaol on his release. The image was created by local artist Martina Hildebrandt.  

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Reading Football Club
Reading Football Club was founded in 1871 and is one of the five oldest clubs in the country. The Royals play at the Select Car Leasing Stadium and the Men’s team currently play in League One while the women are currently in Tier 5. The first match was a 0-0 draw against Reading School at the Reading Recreation Ground (now King’s Meadow).

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Reading Rock 
The Reading Festival is the longest-running popular music festival in the UK. Originally founded as a jazz festival, it became known as a rock festival in the 1970s and 1980s before settling into the successful festival formula for which it is known these days. Today, Reading Festival continues to attract hundreds of thousands of visitors to Reading over the August bank holiday weekend.

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River Thames
Reading has an impressive Thames waterfront for a town that doesn’t have “on-Thames” in its name. But the Thames isn’t our only waterway – the River Kennet and Kennet & Avon Canal flow through the town centre and join the Thames at Kennet Mouth by the horseshoe bridge. And did we mention the Holy Brook which flows underneath Reading?

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Royal Berkshire Hospital
The Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, or the RBH as it is known locally, opened in 1839 on the London Road on land donated by Henry Addington, a local resident and former Prime Minister. Today, the Royal Berkshire Hospital employs 7500 staff providing acute hospital services to the residents of the western and central Berkshire authorities.

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Scallop shell
The emblem of St James can be found in many places in Reading including Reading Abbey, St Laurence’s Church and the University of Reading crest. It can also be seen along the St James’ Way, a long-distance pilgrim route, which starts in Reading and is part of the world-famous Camino de Santiago. Over 500 of the iconic scallop shell waymarking signs have been installed along the whole of its route.

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Simonds Brewery
Beer is one of Reading’s 3Bs, and breweries remain an exciting chapter in Reading's story, even today. Perhaps Reading’s most famous brewery, Simonds, was founded at 83 Broad Street by William Blackall Simonds in 1785. At its height, the company owned 1132 pubs, 80 off licenses and 36 hotels, serviced by 4 breweries. Simonds merged with Courage in 1960.

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Sumer is a Cumen In 
Sumer is a Cumen In is thought to be the oldest known musical composition featuring six-part polyphony. It was composed in Reading Abbey around 1240, and the dialect is believed to be thirteenth-century Wessex/Berkshire/Wiltshire. The Summer Song is celebrated in a plaque proudly displayed in the Abbey Ruins - turn the handle to hear it.

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Sutton’s Seeds
Another of Reading’s 3Bs, selling bulbs and seeds across the world, Sutton’s Seeds was founded in 1806 by John Sutton. Illustrated catalogues were produced showing Sutton’s wide range of products and there were several trial grounds in Reading including Southcote Manor. The first office was at 16 King Street but the firm moved to the Market Place in 1839.

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University of Reading
The University of Reading will be celebrating its centenary in 2026. Originally founded as an extension of Oxford University, it now boasts two campuses in Reading, Henley Business School and a campus in Malaysia. Over the decades it has been pushing academic boundaries and leading social change. It has recently been ranked the Number One Sustainable University in the UK. 

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Merry Christmas from Reading BID
Reading town centre’s Christmas lights are funded by Reading Business Improvement Districts (BID).  Find out what else the BID does for Reading town centre.