THEY came, they saw, they skated.

Winchester mayor Ernie Jeffs, was keen to show fellow mayors exactly what Christmas means to Winchester by taking to the ice, though the ‘chain gang’ didn’t quite seem the next Olympic figure-skating team.

Cllr Jeffs was joined by his wife Barbara, Hart district councillor Steve Gorys and his PA Catherine.

He said: “We invited them to have a look around the Christmas market this year so they have a chance to see how Winchester does Christmas. It was a great day to go as well as the market was absolutely packed. We all work extremely hard so it’s nice to have a bit of light relief.

“As we were walking around the stalls a few of us decided that we would have a crack on the ice-no pun intended of course! Four of us put on our skates and it was great fun.

“I fell over a few times and have a few bruises now. It’s the first time I have done it in 30 years. When I was younger I used to go skating every Sunday and became a bit of an expert really but this time around I found it difficult; my balance was completely off!

“The market is lovely, it’s brilliant. The goods that they are selling have increased and I was amazed by the number of cabins this year, I thought it was magnificent.”