Christmas Star Wars Lego 'sabotage' on Durham Cathedral

Lego Star Wars characters have been attempting to invade the cathedral

A couple have completed a Lego Durham Cathedral Christmas decoration despite "sabotage" by their children who wanted a Star Wars Death Star instead.

Mike Addis and Catherine Weightman used more than 200,000 bricks to create it.

For 20 years they have built festive models including a Dalek, but this year their children refused to help when their pleas for the Star Wars space station were dismissed.

"They're hiding Star Wars toys inside. It's their revenge," Mr Addis said.

The couple, who live in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, have been lifelong fans of the building bricks and made their first model when son Tom, now 22, was a baby.

The couple's children were determined their parents should build a giant Christmas-style Star Wars Death Star

However, the couple opted for Durham Cathedral instead

Since then the living room has been dominated by a variety of 7ft (2m) "Christmassy" Lego angels, Olympic mascots, gingerbread houses and even a Santa Claus Dalek.

In the past, the couple's children have helped create the models but this year all three - Tom, Holly, 19, and Christopher, 16 - refused to join in.

The Dalek Santa from 2011 was one of the most popular models

"Choosing Durham Cathedral over a Star Wars Death Star was the last straw," Ms Weightman said.

'Gobsmacked'

This year's Lego model was inspired by a recent visit to her hometown.

The city's cathedral is currently raising funds by asking people to donate £1 towards one of 350,000 Lego bricks it is using to build its own model of part of the edifice.

"Most people seem really impressed with our finished article and they're gobsmacked by the sheer scale of it. It really does dominate the room," Mr Addis said.

Inside the walls they have created a medieval-style banquet scene complete with tables, plastic food and drink, soldiers, diners and falcons.

Lego Star Wars characters keep creeping into the banquet scene, the couple said

Star Wars characters have also joined the ranks of soldiers at the cathedral door

It is here the couple have found Star Wars characters among the figures.

"It's a sort of attempt at sabotage," Mr Addis said. "And no-one's owning up to it."

The Lego cathedral took almost two months to build.

Durham Cathedral is building its own Lego model of the edifice