Perth and Kinross Council has revealed the true cost of their Christmas season.
The local authority paid nearly £54,000 for musical acts at last month’s switch-on ceremony, it has emerged.
Pop band Lawson cost the local authority £13,500 while agents for retro rockers Showaddywaddy were paid £5,500.
The Courier can reveal that the council spent a further £34,900 on a package of entertainment including main stage star Billy Ocean and tribute act Only One Direction.
The money also paid for street entertainers and ice sculptors.
Last year, the council was embroiled with a row over the £20,000 it paid for headline act Peter Andre.
The authority had initially refused to unveil the Mysterious Girl star’s payment, but was forced to after a successful challenge to the Ombudsman.
The year before, reality TV star Mark Wright switched on the city’s Christmas lights at a cost of £7,000.
Around 30,000 people flocked to Tay Street to see Provost Liz Grant switch on this year’s display.
It is estimated that 98,500 people were in the city centre during the day.
Officials have yet to reveal how much the event made for the town. Last year’s show was thought to have boosted the economy by around £1.5 million.