This Charming Instagram Account Follows Santa Sightseeing In London

Laura Reynolds
By Laura Reynolds Last edited 28 months ago

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This Charming Instagram Account Follows Santa Sightseeing In London
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He may be getting ready for a round-the-world trip in a couple of weeks, but Santa's spending the build-up to Christmas in London if one Instagram account is anything to go by.

@santaclauslondon is full of shots of the man in red popping up across the capital. Some are joyous — shots of him mischievously leapfrogging over benches in Slingsby Place, skipping among the industrial architecture of Shad Thames, and posing for a tourist photo in a red phone box suggest a man treating the city as his own private playground.

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Others leave us feeling a bit more melancholy in the manner of a sad clown; he takes a moment to reflect in the shadow of the Covent Garden tree, and stares wistfully at people having fun on the Natural History Museum ice rink. The overall impression is of an alien dropped in a foreign city and left to explore.

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It's the work of photographer Neil Andrews — better-known on Instagram under his year-round account @mumhad1ofthose. He said:

I started the account as a bit of fun last year. I have been feeling that Instagram has become all a bit too serious. The feed also gave me the space to be a little bit more creative with the images that I created... It was an opportunity to show people the Christmas lights around London in a fun and different way.

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Not only are the photos charming in their nature, they're beautifully and skilfully shot. Andrews has help from his friend Dimitar (@dimitar_hr) and partner Des (@descurran). Occasionally he works with other photographers who can help him showcase Santa in a slightly different way.

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In many of the shots, London's streets are deserted or near-empty, so how does that happen?

Sometimes it is very quick to set up and take the images but other times I have to be patient. I like to try and get up early especially with the images that I take in the build up to Christmas of Santa Claus wondering around London and visiting his favourite locations.

The account began last Christmas, with Santa getting ready for the big day before taking the summer off at his beach house and in flower-filled meadows.

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It's December now though, and he's back in business. Follow the account to see what else Santa gets up to here in London before the big day, and follow @mumhad1ofthose for stunning shots of London and beyond. Santa's little helpers can be found at @dimitar_hr and @descurran.

Last Updated 19 November 2021