The three lucky winners of the Guardian's competition were presented with their prizes at the Christmas Switch On event.

The Guardian's Kelly Morris presented the first prize, £500 worth of Marks & Spencer vouchers to Vicky Hersey, 25, a bank personnel manager from Addiscombe.

Ms Hersey said: "Me and my boyfriend have just bought a new house, so this bit of luck has come at just the right time for us. We can now buy a washing machine, a microwave and spend the rest on doing it up."

The second prize of £300 was won by retired Olive Hennessey of Coulsdon. She said: "This is the first time I've won a competition. It's wonderful because my husband Bill and I are buying a new home."

The third prize of £200 went to Sue Henning, a charity worker from Croydon. She said: "I'll be in Zimbabwe for Christmas so we'll probably spend it on some treats before we go."

The glittering Switch On event in Croydon saw thousands flock to North End to see the pantomime stars welcome in the festive period.

The biggest ever Christmas lights event in the town centre attracted over 4,000 people to North End on a cold Thursday night, where a star spangled festive parade heralded the start of Christmas.

For more pictures and the full story see pages 50 and 51.

November 21, 2001 15:00