Children's hopes and dreams power Great Ormond Street tree at St Pancras

A giant music box shaped like a tree made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
A giant music box shaped like a tree made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station

Plunge has now installed seven iconic Christmas trees at St Pancras International and each one has been a celebration of our team’s craftsmanship and ambition.

As this is the time of year we start to plan for Christmas, we’re taking a moment to look back at what we created last year.

Skilled craftsmen from Plunge Creations making the angel who lights up and sits on top of the music box tree at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant cogs that turn inside a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station

The 2025 concept was a giant, immersive music box, powered by the dreams of children receiving care at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH). 

At its heart sat an 8-sided timber base supporting a 12 metre cone-shaped steel structure, engineered to carry the full complexity of the installation. 

To decorate the tree, our team of makers carefully sewed 18 separate panels of cream and metallic gold material together. This was then meticulously wrapped around the cone structure with a zip at the top to go over the motor. We then engineered a network of tensioned wires to hold festive baubles in place in a helix shape.  

For the top of the tree, we crafted an illuminated ballerina out of willow to gently rotate on a custom-built mechanism. This feature was inspired by The Royal Ballet who visit GOSH every year to dance for the children.

The ballerina was hand-crafted using intricate layered paper techniques, then lit from within to give a soft, luminous presence.

Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Buttons to choose music as part of a music box shaped tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
Notes written by children at Great Ormond Street hospital that form part of a Giant props that form part of a music box shaped like a tree, made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station
A giant music box shaped like a tree made by skilled craftsmen at Plunge Creations, It holds baubles painted by sick children at great Ormond Street hospital and is situated on the concourse at St Pancras international train station

The base of the tree featured integrated seating on three sides, while a large static key, turning cogs, gentle music, and miniature ballerinas in motion, reinforced the music box narrative. Interactive music buttons allowed visitors to select soundtracks, including The Nutcracker and other festive compositions.

Illuminated viewing windows displayed the children’s written dreams, and this formed the conceptual engine of the piece, travelling visually through the installation as if powering the dancing ballerina above.

The lighting within the windows was carefully designed to mirror the soft, atmospheric conditions experienced by the children in the hospital, creating a subtle but powerful connection between the two spaces.

Braille signage was integrated throughout, ensuring accessibility at key touch points, alongside a donation point supporting GOSH.

From an engineering and delivery perspective, the project drew on expertise in large-scale structural design, precision fabrication, rotational mechanics and integrated lighting, all brought together within one of the busiest transport hubs in the world.

Installed overnight by the Plunge team, the space transformed from an empty concourse into a fully realised, immersive installation by morning.

Plunge Creations GOS Htree Bauble1
Plunge Creations GOS Htreebauble3
Plunge Creations GOS Hbauble9
Plunge Creations LGOS Hbaubleline
Plunge Creations GOS Htreenote
Plunge Creations GOS Hbauble7
Plunge Creations GOSH notesfor Tree
Plunge Creations GOSH Notesfor Tree2
Plunge Creations GOSH Tree Baubles
Plunge Creations GOS Htreeworkshop2

During production, baubles to decorate the tree were sent to GOSH so that children receiving treatment could design and paint them. The children also wrote a note for each one, expressing a dream they would like to come true. These were then returned to the children when the tree was taken down.

Alongside the main installation, a miniature version of the tree was also created and delivered to GOSH so that children too unwell to visit St Pancras could still experience the design and see their contributions as part of the finished work.

The project, which Time Out crowned 'The Best Tree in London', was a celebration of imagination, engineering and storytelling, brought to life by a team whose skill, precision, and craftsmanship turned a complex build into something truly magical.

Photo credits: Sam Lane

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