St Mary's Carols by Candlelight is Saturday 19 December at 4pm, with Christmas Eve services at 4pm and 9pm. Plus five Christmas concerts at the church from £12.
St Mary’s Church in Banbury holds its main carol service, Carols by Candlelight, on Saturday 19 December from 4pm to 5pm, with mulled wine and mince pies. On Christmas Eve there is a Crib Service for young children at 4pm and a traditional service of carols and readings at 9pm, and Christmas Day Holy Communion is at 10am.
The church on Horse Fair also hosts five Christmas concerts and a craft fair between 28 November and 12 December. All the dates below come from St Mary’s own arts brochure for September to December 2026, checked against each organiser’s website on 6 November.
The quick answer
- Carols by Candlelight: Saturday 19 December, 4pm to 5pm, St Mary’s Church, Horse Fair, OX16 0AA.
- Christmas Eve: Crib Service at 4pm (come dressed up), and the Christmas Night Eve service of carols, readings and a sermon at 9pm.
- Christmas Day: Holy Communion with hymns at 10am.
- Concerts: Banbury Symphony Orchestra on 5 December (£12, under-18s free) and Banbury Choral Society’s Voices of Christmas on 12 December (£16, under-16s £5) are the big two.
St Mary’s Christmas services
| Service | When | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Carols by Candlelight | Saturday 19 December, 4pm to 5pm | The main carol service, with mulled wine and mince pies |
| Crib Service | Thursday 24 December, 4pm | An informal retelling of the Christmas story for younger children; come dressed up |
| Christmas Night Eve | Thursday 24 December, 9pm | A traditional service with carols, readings and a sermon |
| Christmas Day | Friday 25 December, 10am | Holy Communion, readings and hymns |
The brochure gives no ticket price or booking for the services. The 9pm Christmas Eve service is not a midnight mass: the brochure lists nothing later that night.
Christmas concerts at St Mary’s
Banbury Symphony Orchestra, Saturday 5 December
The orchestra’s own site lists its Christmas concert at 5pm at St Mary’s, with Anderson’s Sleigh Ride, traditional carols and Merry Christmas Everybody. The church’s brochure, printed in August, gave 4pm to 6pm, so go by the orchestra’s time. The brochure gives tickets at £12, with under-18s free, and promises plenty of audience participation.
Banbury Choral Society: Voices of Christmas, Saturday 12 December
Banbury Choral Society sings at St Mary’s under its musical director Jonathan Kingston, from 7.30pm to 9.30pm. The programme is Cecilia McDowall’s Christus Natus Est, Bob Chilcott’s On Christmas Night, Herbert Howells’ A Hymn for St Cecilia and Here is the Little Door, and carols with the audience. Tickets are £16, under-16s £5.
Lumos Live: A Christmas Classical Candlelight Experience, Friday 4 December
A candlelit string trio concert in two sittings, 7pm to 8pm and 9pm to 10pm. The brochure lists five ticket zones: Platinum £45, Gold £30, Balcony £27.50, Silver £25 and Bronze £20, with seating first come, first served within your zone and a bar open beforehand. We could not reach Lumos Live’s own site on 6 November, so check the booking page for availability.
Lights of Love, Thursday 3 December
Katharine House Hospice’s remembrance event starts at 7pm at Banbury Cross with the switching on of the Christmas tree lights, then moves to St Mary’s at 7.15pm for music and reflections from hospice staff, finishing about 8.30pm. It is open to people of all faiths and none, and the hospice asks you to reserve a seat. Names of those being remembered can be dedicated and shown on a screen.
Also nearby
- St Agnes Fountain, the folk band’s Christmas show, Thursday 3 December, 7.30pm, at The Mill, £26. It was down to its last ticket on 6 November (The Mill).
- Bicester Christmas Concert, Saturday 12 December, 4pm to 8pm, Garth Park, run by Bicester Town Council (Bicester Town Council).
- A Christmas concert at Upton House, Wednesday 16 December, 6.30pm to 8pm, with the Community Choir of Oxhill, Tysoe and Shenington: see our Upton House Christmas page.
St Mary’s Christmas Craft Fair, Saturday 28 November
From 10am to 4pm, free entry, with about 30 stalls of handmade gifts, an adults’ and a children’s tombola, and a raffle with a £100 Christmas hamper as first prize. Hot drinks and homemade cakes are on sale. It is the same day as the Banbury Winter Market in the Market Place, a short walk away.
Getting there and parking
St Mary’s is on Horse Fair, OX16 0AA, near Banbury Cross. The church has no parking of its own. Its brochure points to the council car parks along Horse Fair, North Bar and South Bar, and to Castle Quay. Tariffs change, so check our parking in Banbury page for current prices, and our roadworks page for closures.
The church has ramps at both sides of the main entrance, spaces for wheelchair users, a hearing loop and two accessible toilets.
Still to be confirmed
- Lumos Live availability, as its site was not reachable when we checked.
- Any other carol services in Banbury’s churches and villages. If your church is holding one, email hello@banburyonline.co.uk with the date and time and we will add it free.
More Christmas events are on our What’s On in Banbury page.
Sources
- St Mary’s Church Banbury: Arts Programme brochure, September to December 2026 (PDF), read 6 November 2026, for the craft fair, the Lumos Live and concert details, the four Christmas services, parking and access.
- Banbury Symphony Orchestra, read 6 November 2026, for the 5pm start and the programme.
- Banbury Choral Society, read 6 November 2026, for Voices of Christmas and its programme.
- Katharine House Hospice: Lights of Love, read 6 November 2026.
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