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Community Disconnector DNO dims lights Christmas is creeping up so fast you can almost hear Santa's sleighbells tinkling over the rooftops, which is normally a sign to Disconnector that he should have started the Christmas shopping earlier. The big day itself is usually a disaster, with a house full of tearful children unable to understand why their presents are lying unwrapped under the tree having clearly been purchased from the local garage. How to explain? Disconnector is a busy man. Disaster didn't wait until 25 December to strike the Harrogate Theatre company in North Yorkshire, though. It is putting on its seasonal pantomime, Sleeping Beauty, but had to abandon the first night just after the start of the second act when the theatre was plunged into darkness, courtesy of Northern Powergrid's network. The DNO managed to restore the power after three-anda-half hours, but by that time it was too late. It's difficult to make the "Behind you!" routine work when neither the audience nor the actors can see further than the end of their noses. The audience were given a free drink in the bar before being sent home when it became evident the lights were not going to come on any time soon. Everyone was offered alternative tickets or a refund. Aussies rule The Christmas season got off to a better start for David Richards, Father of folly a lawyer living in Canberra, Australia, who likes decking his house out in Christmas lights for charity. The Richards family entered the Guinness World Records book in 2011 when they decorated their home with 331,038 multicoloured lights. Needless to say, they have a big gaff (it was at one time the Japanese embassy), with plenty of driveway on which to drape sheets of bulbs. They were the undisputed kings of over-the-top Christmas decorations until the impertinent Gay family in LaGrangeville, New York, stole their crown last year with an even more neighbour-annoying display comprising 346,283 lights. The Australians being competitive types (as our cricketers are finding out for themselves, to their cost), David got right back on the horse this year and rode back into town with a display employing a mind-boggling 502,165 bulbs. It needed 50km of wire to string them all together. So far, there has been no reaction from the Gays over in the US, but David revealed that he has been told that if he wants to build an even bigger display in the future, he'll have to get his own generator. David wouldn't say how much it cost to buy all the lights, but he did concede that even with low-power LEDs it would cost almost £1,500 to power them for the month leading up to Christmas. Fortunately, a local renewable electricity company has volunteered to foot the bill. Duke's hazard Sponsoring David Richards' Christmas lights display will doubtless garner some good PR for the Australian renewables company involved, and let's face it, most renewables firms these days could do with some favourable headlines. Wind power, in particular, is under attack from all sides for being expensive, noisy and unsightly. Spare a thought, then, for Duke Energy in the US. The big energy supplier has been hit with a $1 million fine for causing the deaths of golden eagles at two of its windfarms in Wyoming. In all, the two windfarms were blamed for the demise of 14 of the iconic birds over the past three years. It's bad enough in the UK with wind turbines being blamed for the deaths of migratory bats, but golden eagles? How long can a company even with Duke Energy's huge resources afford to weather the storm of public opinion before it's torn apart by the mob? It couldn't be much worse for the company if it had been found burning the Stars and Stripes for biomass. It's a pity that it only seems to be important or endangered species that hurl themselves into turbine blades. It's never badgers, for instance. Of course, badgers are flightless and just walk around the turbine unharmed, but that's nothing a helium balloon and a length of string wouldn't sort out. Editor: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellen.bennett@fav-house.com; Energy editor: Megan Darby, t: 01342 332087, e: megan.darby@fav-house.com; Features editor: Karma Ockenden, t: 01342 332086, e: karma.ockenden@fav-house. com; Reporter: Mathew Beech, t: 01342 332082, e: mathew.beech@fav-house.com; Reporter: Conor McGlone, t: 01342 332083, e: conor.mcglone@fav-house.com; Production editor: Paul Newton, t: 01342 332085; Business development manager: Ed Roberts, t: 01342 332067, e: ed.roberts@fav-house.com; Sales executive: Nicky Shaw, t: 01342 332070, e: nicky.shaw@fav-house.com; Publisher: Amanda Barnes, e: amanda.barnes@fav-house.com. General enquiries: 01342 332000; Subscriptions: UK £543 per year, Overseas £655 per year, t: 01342 332011. ISSN: 1356-5532. Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. Printed by: Buxton Press, Palace Road, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 6AE. Published by: Faversham House Ltd, Windsor Court, Wood Street, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 1UZ With green subsidies under fire as all political parties desperately search for ways to reduce energy bills, the renewables sector can do with all the friends it can get, right? Then it's good to see that disgraced former energy secretary Chris Huhne is still fighting the good fight and dismissing calls to cut subsidies as "folly". Chris is a man well qualified on the subject of folly. Sweet Caroline? Last week, Labour leader Ed Miliband had a crack at Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. The first time around, three years ago, he was derided for a PC line-up. This time, a more personal selection included Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline. Hmm. The shadow energy secretary's called Caroline, isn't she? Disconnector's going to be watching the body language at the next party conference... Euro sceptic Richard Cottrell, the Tory Euro MP for Bristol between 1979 and 1989, is standing again at the next Euro elections in 2014, this time as an independent 'Stop Hinkley Point' candidate. Subscriptions: UK £543 per year, Overseas £655 per year fhcustomerservices@ abacusemedia.com 3,580 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2012 UTILITY WEEK | 29th November - 5th December 2013 | 31