David and Victoria Beckham’s daughter Harper Beckham is obsessed with Lapland UK’s Elves Okey and Dokey, the attraction’s co-creator Alison Battle has revealed.
Alison and her husband Mike decided to create the amazing interactive Christmas experience which lets kids meet Father Christmas after being left disappointed by the countless meetings with Santa Claus they’d had with their four sons, Michael, Matthew, Joseph and Christian, when they were younger.
Lapland UK is visited by a host of celebrities and their children each year with The Beckhams coming with their kids the past two Yule Tides, Sir Paul McCartney visiting with his daughter Beatrice, now 14, in the past and Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish coming with their two sons, Zachary, six, and Elijah, four, for the last five years.
When children visit they get to interact with Santa’s Elves, including Conker, Wish and Dough among many more, but six-year-old Harper is in love with Okey and Dokey who are played by Alison and Mike’s identical twin sons.
Speaking to Lisa Snowdon at the launch of their new book ‘The Untold Story of Father Christmas’ and to celebrate Lapland UK’s 10th anniversary, Alison spilled: "Our boys are our inspiration for the whole thing, three of them are currently at university and as soon as they can they come back and get into costume.
"Our twins are identical and when they were younger they were in the West End so they’re quite theatrical and they dress up and call themselves Okey Dokey and they’re quite fun for the visitors because they try and spot which one is which. Harper Beckham is absolutely in love with them. When she’s come the last couple of years she just wants to see Okey Dokey."
Although they have many famous visitors, Mike and Alison say that the VIPs are always the kids and insists David and Victoria, despite their global fame, are just like any other parents who want to see their family – which also includes, Brooklyn, 18, Romeo, 15, and Cruz, 12 – have a magical time with Father Christmas when they come.
Alison said: "The celebrities go round with the other parents and families and no one bothers them because it’s all about the child and the belief. We’ve never done a private tour for anybody, and the celebrities are very warm and want to spend time with their families and the public respect that."
Mike added: "It’s the best of British, there’s all these wonderful families there with the best ambitions and the best values just trying to make memories with their families and have a great time. The children are always the VIPs at the end of the day."
Lapland UK opens its magical pathway on 18 November and is open on selected dates until Christmas Eve (24.12.18) and some tickets are still available from Laplanduk.co.uk.
‘About Lapland: The Untold Story of Father Christmas’, written by Alison and Mike and published by Bloomsbury, is available in book stores from October 2017.
Lapland UK creators reveal Harper Beckham’s favourite elves
