VIRAL VIDEO OF THE DAY - OMG THIS IS OTT

Electrician Alex Goodhind decks out his home in Wiltshire with decorations every year, but this Christmas has forked out an extra £3,000 for new lights to put on his most dazzling display yet.

The lights require so much electricity that he paid for workmen to dig up his road and lay an industrial-strength power cable, after finding himself unable to boil a kettle when the display was switched on. The energy bill for the lights is expected to pass the £700 it cost last Christmas, but Mr Goodhind says the price is worth it for the hundreds of local people who come to see the house every day over the festive period.

The 24-year-old, who started planning this year's decorations in July, puts on his annual display to raise money for a local hospice following the death of his mother. Last year he raised £2,000 for Dorothy House in Bradford on Avon through donations from neighbours and visitors, with local community groups laying on minibus trips to the spectacle.

AND IN THE STATES THEY GO FOR IT EVEN MORE!



BUT NOT EVERYONE IS SPLURGING THIS XMAS

In previous years Christmas in Southward Close, Northumberland, was bathed in the light of 350,000 lights and dozens of huge decorations. Children would trudge for miles to see such wonders as a lit-up igloo, snowmen's tea party, ski slope and a full-size Santa sleigh and reindeer perched on a roof. But now, as the financial crisis bites deep, householders have seemingly opted to save their money. John Scott, 59, a retired civil servant, is typical of those who have pulled the plug on Christmas cheer. "We did the lights and decorations for seven years, but it got too expensive and too much work," he said. "The decorations cost thousands and our electricity bill rocketed over the Christmas period. "With energy bills going up and up it got too expensive to carry on every year. Our bill was doubled when we started doing the lights, and in a credit crunch it was an expense we couldn't stretch to. "It's a shame because hundreds of locals used to come to see the lights switched on. We used to raise thousands of pounds for local charities too. "It's not just our house though - everyone in the street has toned down the decorations." Elsewhere the picture is the same. Alan and Anne Crabtree used to adorn their home with a giant neon Santa and sleigh. But the first new days of December have come and gone without a single Christmas light appearing. A disconsolate neighbouring householder observed: "It's the death of Christmas." A tad dramatic but you know what he means...