Story byLast year, Worcester Parkrun got record numbers on Christmas Day [BBC]Ben Workman; Eleanor Lawson - West MidlandsThu, December 25, 2025 at 7:16 AM UTC·2 min read"We've planned in case of 1,500 people coming. Hopefully that many people turn up, but we'll be happy whatever happens. We always have a good laugh."Worcester parkrun's Christmas Day run broke records with their highest attended event event in 2024, with 1,000 participants, around double their usual attendance. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThis year, volunteers are hoping to beat that record. The 5k event takes place every Saturday at 09:00 GMT around Worcester County Hall and Worcester Woods Country Park, and on Christmas Day, runners and walkers come out in force, with many donned in festive outfits. Richard Ralphs, the Worcester Parkrun event director, is one of the 70-80 volunteers at this year's free Christmas Day event, with Mr Ralphs calling the volunteers the lifeblood of the event."[Last year] was quite a shock, all the other Christmas Days have been fairly normal for attendance - maybe five to 10% higher, but this was nearly double," he said. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"So we will see on Thursday whether we get a bumper attendance."Many people run the race in festive attire, from Santa hats to elf costumes, although sometimes more surprising outfits are worn. Last year, there were people dressed in dinosaur costumes."I'm not sure what's Christmas-y about dinosaurs, but there were Christmas dinosaurs there.