Puffing Billy ready to tour the streets
Puffing Billy is getting ready to bring Christmas cheer to towns and villages as the engine goes out on tour.
The engine was built by businessman Ian Morrell in tribute to the road train he remembered from his holidays at Butlins in Filey as a child.
In the run-up to December 25, the road train will be heading out to communities to bring joy to children and their families.
The train has been the inspiration for a series of books written by Ian and illustrated by Swin Tempest.
A spokesman for the tour said: “Once again Puffing Billy, the magical little road train, will be bringing Santa, Mrs Claus and their elves to a village or area near you.
“It is a great opportunity to bring your children out to meet Santa, and capture the excitement of Christmas, tell them to bring their Christmas letters along and Mrs Claus will check to see if they are on the naughty or nice list.
“Puffing Billy is purely voluntary and supports various children’s charities, including Ward 23, the children’s heart ward, at the Freeman Hospital.
“We will be stopping at designated stops , which will be on the daily route posters, however if people stand in large groups, we can stop for large groups of people.”
The dates and locations of the visit have been confirmed, but the times are still to be announced.
This year’s book is number four in the series and is titled Puffing Billy and Santa’s Naughty Elves.
The tour is backed by North East Mobility Warehouse Ltd, which is run by Ian.
For more details, visit https://www.facebook.com/ puffingbilly1959/.