Giant Trafalgar Square menorah taken down because of strong winds

The words “Happy Chanukah” will instead be projected on to Nelson’s Column in the square this year and a smaller menorah, standing 3.7 metres high, will be put up to mark the beginning of the eight-day holiday, which begins on Christmas Day.

London mayor Sadiq Khan welcomed the holiday amid “difficult times” in the Middle East, according to the BBC, and condemned the unprecedented levels of antisemitism recorded across the capital in the last 15 months.

The Community Security Trust (CST) recorded 1,978 antisemitic incidents across the UK in the first half of 2024, the highest total ever reported in the first six months of any year. This is compared to 964 incidents recorded by CST in the first six months of 2023.

Khan said: "I stand with our Jewish communities today and all days to say that antisemitism has absolutely no place in our city."

The giant menorah in Trafalgar Square marking Chanukah (Photo: Alamy)Alamy Stock Photo

Russell Langer, the JLC’s director of public affairs, previously told the JC that having a large menorah “in Trafalgar Square, the heart of London, the capital of the country, next to the Christmas tree, is a symbol of how Jews in Britain are proud to show their religion and proud to celebrate in public.”

Alongside the mayor of London and the JLC, the menorah is sponsored by the London Jewish Forum and Chabad UK.