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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Entertainment
Lisa McLoughlin

Tom Grennan kicks off the festive season as he switches on Oxford Street Christmas lights

British singer Tom Grennan helped kick off the holiday season on Oxford Street Monday night by switching on its Christmas lights.

This marked the start of London’s major festive illuminations for 2024 and ushered in a season of events on Oxford Street, which will include a partnership with Great Ormond Street Hospital’s GOSH Charity.

After the event, the 29-year-old from Bedford shared his excitement on Instagram, posting a photo with Emily, a young Great Ormond Street Hospital patient who joined him for the special moment.

He wrote: “Honoured to turn on the iconic @OxfordStreetW1Christmas lights with @GreatOrmondSt patient Emily to kick off Christmas in London and support this amazing charity!”

Grennan added: “No child should have to spend Christmas in hospital, but for those who do, Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity works tirelessly to make it feel like Christmas They need your help to keep the magic going—so head to their website and please donate if you can.”

The display features over 300,000 LED stars, making it around 75% more energy efficient than traditional lights.

Grennan’s appearance on Oxford Street comes as he has officially entered the race for 2024’s Christmas Number One.

The Little Bit of Love singer teamed up with Amazon Music for the song, It Can’t Be Christmas, where it can be excusively listened.

Announcing the news this week, the MTV EMA winner shared: “I love everything about Christmas, spending time with friends and family, eating great food, and listening to Christmas music.

“So it was a no brainer for me to team up with Amazon Music to create a festive song of my own.

“I hope you enjoying listening to It Can’t Be Christmas (Amazon Music Original) as much as I enjoyed making it.”

Grennan follows the likes of Ellie Goulding and Sam Ryder in teaming up with the music streaming platform.

Last year, Ryder’s Amazon Music Original track, You’re Christmas To Me, was pipped to the Christmas Number One post by WHAM!’s festive classic, Last Christmas.

While Goulding, 37, enjoyed success with a cover of Joni Mitchell’s River, topping the official charts for a week in 2022.

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