Lego Workshop
The giant lego workshop in London's Covent Garden (Image: Londonist)
A life-size Santa’s workshop created from 700,000 Lego bricks is showing what’s possible with plastics in a festive display in London.
The display in Covent Garden marks the sixth consecutive year of Christmas-themed Lego creations in the capital, with the workshop following a ride-on train, sleigh with reindeer and giant advent calendar.
Built by Duncan Titmarsh, the UK’s only certified Lego professional, guests can join in with elves on a specially-created production line and use smartphones for an interactive experience.
Titmarsh is one of only 14 certified builders worldwide. His creations include the largest LEGO
structure ever built – a 13-metre high version of London’s Tower Bridge – as well as numerous projects including a life-sized house, model of the Olympic Park and even a bespoke sign for the UK’s leading plastics show, Interplas, in 2014.
London’s Lego-ing Mad
The seasonal installation follows the recent opening of the world’s biggest Lego store in London’s Leicester Square in November, which features several interactive and play-on models including a 6m-tall Big Ben, light-up Lego tube map and life-size tube carriage.
In addition, retailer John Lewis also paid homage to the popularity of Lego by recreating five of its annual Christmas adverts out of the bricks in its Oxford Street store in mid-November.
These included this year’s advert – about a boxer dog named ‘Buster’ – which used 1,200 plastic bricks, as well as 2015’s much-loved ‘Man on the Moon’ commercial, which was recreated using some 1,700 bricks taking a total of 33 hours.
Topping Christmas lists
Lego’s popularity with children of both genders shows no sign of waning, with a recent survey by the Royal Mail revealing Lego has topped the Christmas wish lists of children in 2016.
Taking the number one spot this year, Lego has taken a place in the top three most-wanted Christmas gifts every year since 2013.