Pre-Christmas over indulgence usually involves a few too many drinks at the office party and plenty of mince pies.

Yet a group of revellers in Maidstone went a few steps further as they celebrated the start of the festive season as they stripped off in the winter chill - with one seen wearing nothing but a wizard's hat.

Resident Ozzy Nightingale was the first to spot four people, two men and two women, running around Buckland Hill without any clothes on in the early hours of Sunday morning.

He said: "They came out of a house near the top of the road, all shouting and obviously drunk, and ran up on to London Road towards the train station."

Later, Tim Davison saw what is presumed to be the same group - unless there were two gangs of naked revellers that night.

He said: "It was about 2.30 in the morning, when I saw a naked man wearing a wizard hat near the Argos store in London Road.

"There were a couple of others, including a girl who ran off round the corner."

Mr Davison was able to snatch a photo of the wizard's back, but he didn't manage to snap his warlocks.

"They came out of a house near the top of the road, all shouting and obviously drunk..." - Ozzy Nightingale

He described the wizard as in his 20s, 6ft tall, with short blond hair under his hat.

The temperature in Maidstone at 2.30am on Sunday was around 5°.

Residents say this is not the first time the group have done a midnight flash.

One said: "This is probably the third or fourth time this month.

"I don't know whether they're students or something or if they're on drugs, but it's obviously not appropriate for a group of young guys and girls to be running around the neighbourhood in the buff where everyone can see them."

Police say they had no incidents reported to them.