WHEN Aubrey Brown started his Christmas display more than two decades ago it was simply a shed with a few lights.

Now every festive season his home in Cranmore Avenue is the framework for a magnificent show of illuminations that raises money to help animals in need.

Aubrey, 55, told the Adver how he got started. “I’ve been doing this for years now around 24 years, we do it for Blue Cross every year because it’s for animals and this is what we do here is for the children.

“I started doing it for PDSA to begin with because we didn’t have a lot of money and one of our dogs was injured and we had used them.

“I just love Christmas, we also do a display for Halloween, so we’re very busy this time of year.”

Some of the hundreds of decorations collected over the years come from as far away as America and keeping them lit means Aubrey faces a huge £450 electricity bill for December.

The eye-catching show also features a tombola offering visitors the chance to win a prize at £1 a spin. And he dresses up as Santa for the children. They love it so much they write him letters every year.

He said: “It makes me feel great because my youngest child is 26 now so this is my Christmas now. I just love doing this.”

But he stressed the show wouldn’t have been possible without the help of his friends Karen and Mark Stew, Andy Diles and Stephanie Taylor.