Rome mayor to switch on lights on Netflix-sponsored Christmas tree.
Rome's mayor Virginia Raggi will turn on the lights of the city's Christmas tree, sponsored by Netflix, in Piazza Venezia on 8 December.
Raggi made the announcement on her Facebook page alongside the tongue-in-cheek comment: "Ladies and Gentlemen #Spelacchio is Back in Roma!"
The mayor's little joke was an ironic reference to last year's Christmas tree, an unfortunate specimen ridiculed internationally for its "manginess", earning it the derogatory nickname Spelacchio.
This year the capital's 20m-high Italian fir will be decorated with 60,000 LED lights and 500 baubles, at a total cost to Netflix of €376,000.
The lights on the Vatican's Christmas tree, a 23m-high fir, will be switched on the day before, on 7 December.
