The “Christmas house” has returned to Larkfield for another year and the couple who own it say this year’s light display is “the best so far”.

Cancer-surviving couple Pat and Kevin Green have been raising money for the past 14 years, taking donations as they light up their road with festive lights.

After weeks of preparation, the couple’s semi-detached Oak Drive home lit up on Saturday, despite some technical difficulties.

Following the event, which raised £200 on the night, Mrs Green said: “We say it every year, but this year’s lights really are the best so far.

“Kevin has spent weeks preparing, he even took last week off work to make sure we could make the date, but I’m really proud of what he’s done, people were telling me its the best display we’ve had.

“There must have been at least 150 people there, in the end we’d nearly blocked the road.”

Last year the couple raised £550 for Cancer Research, inspired to raise money by their own battles with the disease.

Mrs Green, 59, has been in remission from throat cancer since 2012, while her 64-year-old husband was diagnosed with prostate cancer the previous year.

In the past, the grandparents have raised money for the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance and children’s bereavement support charity, Slideaway.

Additions to this year’s display included a shooting star, and a seven-foot Christmas tree, now planted in the front garden.

But despite all the hard work, the grand switch on nearly ended in disaster.

"I once got in a cab and the driver called it the ‘tacky Christmas house’, I had to tell him it was mine" - Pat Green

Mrs Green explained: “Normally Kevin has to turn the lights on from the inside, this year my son-in-law bought a remote for him so he could see it from outside, but as soon as he hit the switch the fuse blew.

“Luckily we had the lights up and running within a couple of minutes.

“I’m still surprised at the turn-out, it brings such a nice feeling when there’s so many bad things that happen in the world, it makes me feel blessed.

“Most people around here know it as the Christmas house, but I once got in a cab and the driver called it the ‘tacky Christmas house’, I had to tell him it was mine.”

With £200 already in the coffers from Saturday, the Greens, who have eight grandchildren, now hope to smash their previous fundraising record of £700, with a donation box remaining outside their home until the first week of January.

To donate, head to Oak Drive and look for the house with the lights on.