EIGHT little people now have a very special birthday after being brought into the world with the help of staff from Musgrove Park Hospital on Christmas Day.

The maternity unit helped to deliver five babies on the labour ward, two in the Bracken Birthing Suite and one home birth.

After finding out their birth could be a little trickier than normal, Rachael and Gareth Wilson were prepared to have their baby induced on Christmas Eve.

Evan Wilson was born at 2.31pm on Christmas Day, weighing 7.7lbs.

Mrs Wilson said: "We had a bit of a different Christmas Day. I knew three or four weeks ago that I had a liver condition called cholestasis so he needed to be induced at 37 weeks.

"We had our Christmas early because we knew when it was going to happen, so I made sure he had his little Christmas outfit ready."

Baby Theo Mason was also an early Christmas present for mum Amber Moon and Dad Tyler Mason.

Theo wasn't expected until January 13, so it was a shock for Amber when he was born at 8.34pm weighing 6.3lbs.

"It was definitely a surprise as we weren't expecting him yet," she said.

"We didn't fit anything festive in, he's a different type of Christmas present.

"We will have a belated celebration when we get home."

Coming a few days late was Harry Thomas Belsom, who was born at 12.51am weighing 10.2lbs.

Parents Jessica Barrie and Alex Belsom said they didn't mind when he was born, as long as he was healthy.

Miss Barrie said: "He was the best present. Our Christmas celebrations will be different from now on, maybe he can have two birthdays like the Queen.

"We were expecting him on the 22nd so we had his reindeer outfit ready for him to go home in."