Cragside’s Giant Redwood named as World’s Tallest Bedded Christmas Tree
A mighty decorated Giant Redwood at National Trust’s Cragside in Northumberland is in the Guinness World Records having secured the title for the World’s Tallest Bedded Christmas Tree.
The 44.7m giant redwood is dressed in more than 1,300 dazzling lights to transform it into a towering festive showstopper.
It stands at more than twice the height of the Angel of the North. It is one of millions of trees planted in the 1860s by the estate’s founders, the Armstrong family, some of which are now the tallest of their kind in the country.
‘It’s been quite the year of planning,’ explains Steve Howard, Visitor Operations Manager.
‘It’s been tough keeping this big secret quiet over the last few weeks, but we wanted to share our huge news while many people are putting up their own Christmas trees.’
‘Last year we presented the UK’s Tallest Living Christmas Tree, and we kept wondering if we could go one giant leap further and secure a Guinness World Records title… and we made it!’
In addition to all the lights, the tree is also dressed in two large purple bows to meet the essential criteria to have two traditional decorations on the Christmas tree.
The world’s tallest bedded Christmas tree festooned in 1320 multi-coloured lights at Cragside, Northumberland. Image: © Bec Hughes / National Trust Images.
The tree was officially measured with witnesses present and signed off by a Guinness World Records adjudicator when the tree was dressed last month.
‘The breathtaking giant redwood, perched on the edge of the hillside, is a vision of growth and pure beauty in Cragside’s historic landscape. It was a privilege to give this tree the recognition it deserves,’ says Carl Saville, Guinness World Records adjudicator.
‘It was a privilege to give this tree the recognition it deserves’
So, if you’re dressing a Christmas tree at home then spare a thought for the team unravelling almost 800-metres of lights to hang on the towering tree.
Festooning a tree that’s more than 10 double-decker buses tall takes some industrial thinking: the team used a cherry-picker which can reach 51-metres – and it took three people over the course of two days to hang the lights.
Every bulb is meticulously checked and then draped and fastened vertically so as not to put too much pressure on the tree, which has been part of the Armstrongs’ ‘fantasy mountain landscape’ for more than 150 years.
This is not the first time the grounds have been decorated in celebratory lights. In 1884, to commemorate a royal visit, the Armstrongs decorated the estate’s hillsides in thousands of lamps.
Carl Saville, Guinness World Records adjudicator, presents Steve Howard (Visitor Operations Manager) and Chris Clues (Head Forester) with the certificate. Image provided by The National Trust.
The tree’s multi-coloured lights echo the Christmas spectacle inside the house, with a theme that takes inspiration from a real Servants’ Ball held at Cragside in 1894.
It imagines that the Armstrong family have gone away for the festive season, and their staff are throwing a mischievous party.
The rooms are in topsy turvy colourful chaos as servants have abandoned their tasks to don their finest attire, ready for an evening of energetic dancing, mingling – and maybe even a touch of romance.
Cragside in the snow, Northumberland. Image: © Sheila Rayson / National Trust Images
‘With the rooms in the House decked out in vibrant decorations, it felt only right to dress the tree in glorious technicolour as well, and we can’t wait to welcome visitors to experience the World’s Tallest Bedded Christmas Tree throughout the festive season,’ says Steve.
The tree plays a starring role in BBC Two’s Christmas Treasures of the National Trust, which airs on Friday 19 December at 9pm and on iPlayer.
The episode takes a behind-the-scenes look at festive preparations around the Cragside estate. Christmas at Cragside is on until Sunday 4 January 2026.
Breaktime News recently reported on the return of a vintage Victorian grand piano to Cragside following its dramatic journey around the world…
