A mother of two from St Albans has had her home transformed into a Winter Wonderland after winning a £15,000 Christmas makeover.

Hayley Smart won the festive facelift by coming top in the Foxy Bingo's annual competition, Foxy Turns You On.

Hayley, of Green Lane, beat 3,000 others to win the prize with a bitter sweet poem that draws on her real life experiences from last year’s festive season.

Her poem read: "Last year’s Christmas was cheerless and murky, tree went bald I burnt the turkey, dog had a needle in his paw, suffered a visit from mother in law, I was ill, I stayed in bed, constant vomit pounding head, decorations were tatty and homemade, moth-eaten, shabby, worn and frayed, kids were bored tried to be glad, even though our efforts were sad, money was tight so gifts were sparse, frankly Christmas was a pain in the...bottom, please Foxy help me redeem, make this Christmas a nicer dream."

She added: "Last Christmas we all got struck down by food poisoning. It was awful. The whole family were sick, so it was a bit depressing to be honest.

"When I saw Foxy’s competition advertised online, I thought I could take that negative experience and turn it into something positive, which I’ve done. I’m so pleased to have won and Christmas is going to be great this year."

The 38-year-old’s house has been decorated in more than 5,500 Christmas lights, covering a staggering 213 metres. They include LED curtains, a canopy of stalactite lights and illuminated features on the roof and in the garden.

To mark the big switch-on, Foxy Bingo threw a street party for the residents of Green Lane. Hayley was joined by her children, Ashely and Jasmine, neighbours and friends.