ANOTHER Midland expat who will be opening his Christmas gifts across the water this year is IT consultant Lee Abercrombiecarswell from Hamstead.

Former Stuart Bathurst School pupil Lee left the UK in 2003 and moved to California with his American wife, Jeni.

The couple, who moved to north Seattle four years ago, will be celebrating Christmas with their daughters Rita, four, and two-year-old Zola, plus some very special guests.

Lee, 34, said: “My mum, dad and brothers are coming over for Christmas this year.

“They will be staying with me and my family and on Christmas day we’ll get together at the in-laws for a big celebration. The best things about Christmas over here include the scenery, which is beautiful, with snow, the Pacific Ocean and the mountains.”

Cadbury’s chocolate, roast pork sandwiches from West Brom market and Aston Villa top the list of things Lee misses the most about Christmas in England.

He added: “I miss the daft things like the Christmas number one and getting the Radio Times.”