Christmas At Belton new sparkling lights trail revealed

And this week she is bringing the magic to Christmas at Belton.

Zoe, head producer of trail creators Culture Creative, today revealed some of the new dazzling highlights and returning festive favourites set to lift the lockdown gloom.

BUY TICKETS: Christmas at Belton has rescheduled its launch date - to enable additional health and safety measures - it now opens Friday, December 4 then runs on selected nights to January 3, 2001. For time slots, prices and to book tickets visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/belton-house/features/christmas-at-belton.

Now returning for its second year, the mile-long lights trail is going ahead after meeting all the pandemic health and safety measures required to give it not just the green light but every colour of the NHS rainbow.

Thousands of people were dazzled by its twinkling lights, projections, fire and lasers last year.

This year more than a million individual pea lights will provide the wow factor like never before and bring some much needed extra cheer to families this Christmas.

Zoe revealed new installations include a display of electronics snowdrops as tree tops glisten and shimmer, drenched in seasonal colours, as the after-dark experience also returns the jaw dropping Cathedral of Light, a towering, walk-through archway, festooned with lights.

A fire garden is also back, but in a different place.

Visitors will again experience a magica start to the trail when they leave the courtyard via a door leading into the sparkling formal gardens in front of the orangery.

Zoe said: "That's my absolute favourite thing about Belton - how you enter through a door like The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe and it opens up into the formal garden and the orangery, then out into the woodland walk and back down towards the house.

"It's wonderful to be back at Belton. It's a fantastic space to work with and we have created a brand new trail, working with new artists, introducing some amazing new highlights, including a whole display of electronics snowdrops

"We ae playing with the landscape, looking at the flora and fauna, taking visitors to places that they didn't go to last year. We work with the spirit of the venue.

"But we're also bringing back some of the favorites, like the fire garden - though it will be in a very different place from last year. And our favorite is returning, the Cathedral of Light, one of our signature pieces of the show.

"My absolute favorite thing about Belton is how you enter the trail from the courtyard through a door - like the Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe - you walk through and it opens up into the formal garden and the orangery, then out into the woodland walk and back down towards the house.

"There's a reflection pool and a wonderful oversized seat that I absolutely love."

She said wrap up warm, wear waterproofs and wellies if it is going to rain and read all the health and safety advice that will be provided this year to help everyone stay safe.

"Especially this year, we're definitely trying to make sure that everybody comes as prepared as they can. Please buy your tickets in advance, they will then be electronic on your mobile device.

"And read the additional information that you will be sent this year. We are doing everything to make sure that it's not only an enjoyable experience, but also a very safe one. There will be people on the site to help you as much as we can."

Christmas at Belton is one of seven illuminated trails brought by leading promoter Raymond Gubbay Limited and is held in partnership with the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and Culture Creative.

This is decking the halls on an industrial scale.

But who puts up the Christmas tree in the Bogtrell family home?

Zoe laughs as she admits she's the one who does that.

She said: "We have a real Christmas tree every year and it is simply decorated.

"I've been lucky enough over the years to travel all over the world and wherever I go I bring back a Christmas decoration. So I have decorations on my tree from Canada, Italy, the United States and around the UK.

"But it's very simply decorated with some warm white Christmas tree lights and no tinsel - hashtag no tinsel. But wonderful memories that I have that can hang on this tree every year."