TikTokker lives out his railway dream
TRAINSPOTTING TikTok superstar Francis Bourgeois has been able to live out his dream thanks to Llanelli & Mynydd Mawr Railway.
Francis, 21, who has amassed over 2.2 million followers on TikTok for his joyfully enthusiastic videos of spotting trains, visited the Carmarthenshire-based charity on January 25 with his trainspotting pals Ryan Windridge and Kyle Udell, who are often featured in Francis’ videos.
The internet sensation posted videos of his time at LMMR to his social media, and these have since been viewed over a million times.
In the TikTok video, Francis’ friend Gordon poses as a ticket inspector and tells Francis he will be driving the train they are on.
Francis’ iconic GoPro then captures all of his excitement as he drives the locomotive.
Ryan and Kyle also got to try their hand at train-driving.
It was the first time the three had been in charge of a train, but Kyle said they were helped by the volunteers.
Kyle said: “It was amazing driving trains. It was quite scary at first, but the volunteers were there to help and show me what to do, so I was a bit calmer after that.
“We knew we were going to be driving one train, but we actually got to drive three. Our favourite part of the day was doing the horns.”
Ryan added: “When we arrived and walked into the yard, they had all the trains ready and they blasted the horns for us. We didn’t know they were going to do that, but it was a lovely welcome.
“The horns are so loud, Kyle was a little scared by them, but me and Francis loved them, we were both laughing and laughing.”
“My coalless rail freight driver friend Mark told me about the place a few weeks ago and I just messaged them on Facebook. It took me a while to find them, as my Welsh spelling isn’t the best.”
The Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway, which is on the site of the former Cynheidre Colliery, is a charity run entirely by volunteers and was opened to the public in September, 2017, with a handful of carriages which are run over 100m of track.
In 2019 the track was extended and visitors have experienced Santa’s grotto and train rides since then.
In 2022 they wish to extend the railway and develop the site to give visitors and enthusiasts a full day out.
The trio couldn’t speak more highly of the experience, with Ryan describing it as: “10/10, we will definitely be going back. It was a fantastic day.”
The LMMR will reopen with a gala running day on Saturday, March 26, 2022 to kick-start the new summer season with regular events then following through to October.