The Best Festive Christmas LEGO Sets from Years Gone By

LEGO and Christmas "“ it goes together like mince pies and brandy butter, like the Muppets and Charles Dickens, like port and cheese, like snowmen and scarfs"¦ well, you get the point.

There's been so many Christmas and winter-themed LEGO sets released over the years that you would need Santa's workshop to store them all, so let us help you narrow the list down a bit as we look at our favourite festive brick models from years gone by, with a few recent offerings thrown in.

If you're interested in the LEGO Winter Village collection which started in 2009, we've written a separate list counting down all our picks from that range.

Microscale Gingerbread House 40337

2019's Creator Expert gift-with-purchase has consistently been rated as one of the best festive sets among the LEGO fan community. With a jovial, colourfully designed gingerbread house exterior packed into a company model, this nifty set is perfect for displaying on shelves, mantlepieces or even on top of a Christmas cake.

Christmas Train 40138

This delightful Xmas-themed train features a vivid red, green and gold colour scheme, perfectly evoking the festive spirit. The front steam engine pulls a candy wagon and caboose, complete with Christmas tree, candy elements, and a signpost.

Christmas Wreath 2-in-1 40426

We can't get enough of this wreath, which uses a stunning array of elements to recreate a classic greenery display, which can be displayed anywhere at home or on a front door while avoiding the natural decay of real foliage. Once the season is over, it can then be packed away for use the following year. The 2-in-1 design also allows you to repurpose the wreath to display four candles, representing the four weeks of advent.

LEGO Ideas Home Alone 21330

Any now-grown-up AFOLs from the "˜90s will know that Home Alone remains one of the best-loved Christmas movies, and this epic LEGO set contains the complete interior and exterior of the famous McCallister home. The brick-built walls and roof easily open out to reveal the insides, with all the traps and tricks Kevin used to defeat the Wet Bandits. Easily showcased on its own, or as part of a bigger city display, this detail-packed model is always top of our list over the holiday period.

Christmas Tree 40338

The LEGO 40573 update of this model is still available to buy online, but we think the 2019 GWP version is the best, with the cute train set and gift boxes below the tree. Both sets make ideal festive additions to work desks and free shelf space over the festive period.

LEGO Santa 40206

This 2016 set gave collectors a goofy brick-built version of Father Christmas himself, wearing the iconic red robes and hat originally made famous by the Coca-Cola advertisements of the mid-20^th century. This happy Santa characters looks fantastic displayed anywhere at Christmas and is still affordable to buy on resale websites.

Santa's Sleigh 40499

While we're on the subject of Jolly Old Saint Nicholas, this more recent sleigh became an instant favourite in our offices and a much-loved model to place under the tree or next to the fireplace on Christmas Eve. Often combined with other festive sets, this model shows Santa Claus on his iconic red sleigh (filled with gifts, of course), which is pulled by four reindeers figures.