25 Dec 2025
St Albans boasts some pretty quirky Christmas traditions – think Carols Till Closing, pubs made of gingerbread, the Marshalswick Elf and the postbox toppers campaign – but arguably there are none weirder than the sight of a fully-grown adult dressed in a Santa Claus outfit and realistic dog mask posing for photos with the pooches of pub regulars.
Yet Santa Paws has become one of the city’s most popular festive events since it was originally launched by publican Sean Hughes at The Boot several years ago.
It is now hosted by The Lower Red Lion in Fishpool Street and this year raised £695 for homelessness charity Open Door.
One evening in the run-up to Christmas saw 58 dogs and 45 humans come into the child-free pub, snuggle up to Santa for their Christmas ‘pawtrait’ and receive a festive goodie bag. All credit to Desneri Photography, this isn’t as easy as it sounds, and required a lot of dog treats to get the excited pups to sit still.
Landlord David Worcester said: “We’ve got loads and loads of dogs in St. Albans, everyone loves a dog, and it’s just wacky and super fun. This year’s Santa Paws is Marnie, who started work with us in August and immediately had her eye on the job!”
His partner Sian O’Sullivan added: “We’ve got dog owners from 18 to 80, three chihuahuas in there no bigger than the size of your palm, and they’ve all got Christmas outfits on, and then we’ve got Bowie, who’s 35 kilos of pure dread and scariness. You’ve just got to embrace the madness and the chaos.”
All pictures by Desneri Photography.
