A statement from Cheltenham in full reads:
'The switch has been made following a request from Gloucestershire Police in order to avoid a clash with the Christmas lights festivities in
'The switching on of the Christmas lights is now a big event in
'The festivities, which began with street entertainment from 1pm and continued with a parade through the town and ended with Father Christmas switching on the lights at 6pm.
'With such a large event taking place in the town it was felt that an expected sell-out crowd at