Merry Hill is sliding into the festive season with a jam-packed Christmas launch on Saturday November 19.

The free family friendly event will officially unveil the brand-new central Christmas attraction, a huge 19 foot festive-themed slide that will be open for children and adults alike to enjoy up until the New Year. 

At the launch event, a dazzling cast of dancers, performers and acrobats are set to take over the central event space at Merry Hill from 1pm with a colourful Christmas show to celebrate the beginning of the festive season, with performances continuing until 4.30pm.

To help visitors enjoy a fun day out whilst ticking off their Christmas shopping lists, the centre has also lined up a fun host of activities for families to enjoy throughout the season, including 14 days of festive performances, starting from December 1.

The performances, which include an eight-piece brass band and entertainment from regulars at the well-known Birmingham entertainment venue ‘The Jam House’ will be at the centre on various days until December 24. In addition to these musicians, singers and bands spreading festive atmosphere across the centre Merry Hill is also giving local community choirs and acts from children’s community groups the opportunity to bring their talents to the centre malls.

Visitors will also be able to snap festive selfies in the glowing star selfie stand outside M&S and Argos and will be encouraged to keep an eye out for the ever-changing interactive gift guide, which will in the centre until Christmas Eve displaying the latest offers to help provide some gift-spiration.

A team of crafty wrappers will also be on hand in the central event space to help get gifts ready for the big day with an environmentally friendly approach.

Jonathan Poole, centre manager at Merry Hill said: “Community is at the heart of everything we do at Merry Hill, which is why Christmas is always such a special time that highlights how we are so much more than just a shopping destination. This year we wanted to go the extra mile, and add some new additions to our festive offering, and we’re particularly excited to see our shoppers enjoy all that we have on offer.”

Jonathan added: “At Merry Hill, making Christmas shopping stress free and a good day out is our mission, which is why we want to give our visitors more than just a great retail offering, but a spectacular selection of activity to enjoy.”

All performances and events are free.