The theme of this year’s Fenwick Christmas window display has been unveiled as Shaun the Sheep.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the famous window by the department store in Newcastle’s city centre, which is one of the biggest Christmas displays of its kind in Europe.
Work begins in January and continues all year round to bring the display to life in time for the festive season, from composing music to building the festive scenery.
This year marks the second time that the big reveal has been done virtually due to Covid.
While crowds would typically gather in person to see the window be revealed, the unveiling was instead live-streamed online by Fenwick for the first time in 2020, meaning that the long-held Geordie tradition could be seen by the rest of the world.
More than 250,000 viewers tuned in to last year’s event, which had a Wind in the Willows theme.
The online reveal was a big hit again this year, with people watching from as far afield as America, Canada and New Zealand.
The window is now open to the public on Newcastle’s Northumberland Street, and visitors can check it out from now until it finishes at the end of December.
While beloved children’s characters are a popular theme when it comes to the window, this latest instalment is a more modern choice than in previous years, which have included Alice in Wonderland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Gulliver’s Travels, and Paddington.
Fenwick has partnered with Aardman Animations this year, the studio behind Shaun the Sheep as well as Wallace and Gromit, to bring the much-loved sheep and his friends to the window.
The animated display depicts a glimpse of the latest Shaun the Sheep festive special, The Flight Before Christmas, which is due to air on BBC One over the Christmas period.
The scenes across Fenwick’s eight windows show a Christmassy Mossy Bottom Farm, where Shaun lives with his flock. Lamb Timmy goes missing, leading to Shaun embarking on an adventure to get him home for Christmas.
Richard Beek, producer at Aardman, said: “We are extremely proud of the film and to be able to share it with everybody in such a unique and special way is fantastic, I’m sure everyone will love the windows as much as we do!”
As part of the partnership, Fenwick’s rooftop cinema in Newcastle will be screening an exclusive Aardman film, featuring some of the studio’s most iconic characters, throughout November and December.
Fenwick also has a selection of special edition Shaun the Sheep Christmas gifts on sale.
