AFTER months of organising and a last-ditch effort to raise funds, Taunton town centre was majestically lit up as the Christmas lights were switched on yesterday.

There were stalls and fairground rides to entertain people before the switch-on itself.

The lights were turned on by children whose parents had entered them in a competition; they put a pound in an envelope, with their email address, and posted it to Kelly Durdan, organiser of the event.

Ms Durdan said she couldn't have been happier with how the event turned out. She said: “It was amazing. The amount of people that turned up was incredible. The stalls were amazing, everything as a whole went fantastically well.”

It was estimated that around 96,000 people turned up to last year's switch on and Ms Durdan said she believed just as many, if not more, attended yesterday.

She added: “The organisation has been non-stop and the community didn't let us down. Their help ensured Taunton got Christmas lights this year and that must give them a great sense of achievement.”

It's been three years since the defunct Taunton Town Centre Company stopped funding the event and Ms Durdan spoke about the challenges of spearheading the Make Taunton Sparkle appeal. She said: “There have been trials and tribulations, days where you think you don't know what you're doing.

“But standing there last night (Sunday) showed it was all worthwhile.”

She said preparations for next year's event would begin as early as January in order for Taunton to avoid another last-gasp funding plea.