THOUSANDS of people lined the High Street as Christmas in Southend kicked off in spectacular style.

Former Eurovision Song Contest entrant Josh Dubovie, Peter Pan and Father Christmas and his reindeer were among the stars who helped welcome the festive season in on Saturday.

The day of family fun started with the annual Christmas parade which left Caffe Nero at 1pm and finished outside the Royals Shopping Centre, which sponsored the parade.

The highlight of the day was the switching-on of the town’s sparkling Christmas lights at 5pm which took place to a huge cheer from the hundreds gathered around the stage.

This year the prestigious honour fell to Josh who was helped by Mario Mugan, who appeared in this year’s Big Brother, Peter Pan and Southend mayor Ann Holland.

The day’s festivities finished with the fireworks finale on the seafront at 5.30pm.