By Community Correspondent Suzie Bird

On the 9th of December, with Christmas dawning on us, Thames Ditton village and its cheerful community held their annual shopping evening.

With the road running through the street closed, stalls lining the pavements and pedestrians and cheerful shoppers covering the street. With mauled wine, hot chocolates, lights, christmas carols and tunes playing and the stalls selling all sorts of goods. While down the road, in the pub the George and the Dragon, singers and comedians performed and showed their talent, or lack of.

To encourage the jolly villagers, shops put up sparkling festive decorations and added discounts to many of their products due to the flocks of people ready with cash and credit cards to spend on Christmas gifts. The stitchery, a well known shop, put on a beautiful display and had hand made special merchandise especially for Christmas. Along with the other shops of which there are few, opened their welcoming doors with warm smiles and celebrated amung friends and customers.

This well anticipated evening of socialising and shopping encouranges the warm hearted community of Thames Ditton to get together and celebrate everyone's favourite time of year. It should also encourage us all to remeber that Christmas is ment to be about sharing and giving, not greed and recieving presents.