Peggy and Donal’s dazzling display
A FAMOUS Mid Cork Christmas display is once again lighting up the Macroom countryside, spreading festive cheer and aiding a good cause.
Peggy and Donal O’Callaghan have been lighting their Codrum home up with a viariety of Christmas lights for well over 40 years now, and for the last 18 years have collected donations for charity from onlookers who have travelled from across Munster to see their dazzling display.
This year all money raised will go to the Simon Community via Macroom priest Fr John Keane.
Donal started it 43 years ago when he put one set of lights around one tree – and his wife, Peggy, thought it was quite a peculiar thing to do. Now it’s over 300,000 lights, and counting!
Every year they have a Switch On Party where there’s plenty of treats on offer, plus music and even a snow machine. This year Virgin Media news anchor Paul Byrne switched on the lights and even did interviews with onlookers to gauge their reactions .. and all were very impressed, of course.
The big display doesn’t stop outside – they have a Christmas Village inside their home.
Peggy and Donal welcome visitors from all over to see their Christmas lights free-of-charge, only taking in donations for local charities.
Not one to rest on his laurels with the same lights each year, Donal tweaks the spectacular display annually and inn recent years has added laser lights, which his daughter brought back from America for him, and a giant Christmas tree in the garden.
With such a mammoth display, they are lucky to get lots of help from friends and neighbours putting them up, as well as taking them down.