MIDSUMMER is an unlikely time to see Santa Claus, but as people sweltered in the hot sun, none other than Father Christmas himself has been seen striding along the platform at the Severn Valley Railway’s Kidderminster town station.
Santa was in town to catch a glimpse of the SVR’s very high profile visitor, ‘Flying Scotsman’ before its departure from the SVR, and also to carry out a recce of some of the locations for the all-new Christmas events that he’ll be appearing in at the heritage railway later this year.
Last Friday, the iconic steam loco No 60103 hauled the first passenger service the full length of the 16.5-mile heritage line to Bridgnorth over the Mor Brook bridge since it was repaired.
SVR managing director Gus Dunster spoke at a short ceremony at Bridgnorth and paid tribute to the many people who had worked so hard to repair the embankment which was damaged by a landslip following storms and flooding in January.
The ‘Flying Scotsman’ spent four days at SVR from Friday to Monday.
Looking ahead, the SVR will be running Santa’s Steam Specials from Kidderminster, while the Elf Express which will depart from Bridgnorth.
The heritage line is working in partnership with the Wise Owl Theatre Company to produce the events.
Wise Owl’s artistic director Chris Brookes said he’s taking inspiration from the railway itself:
“There’s something about steam trains that’s already very theatrical, and so for Santa’s Steam Specials we’re creating a unique immersive experience that’s completely different from what you’d get in a standard theatre setting,” he added.
“Passengers travel by steam train from Kidderminster to Arley for the Great Christmas Train Rescue, a theatrical show with Santa himself, plus Polly the polar bear and a scheming villain, Victor Von Sneeze. We’re working with War Horse’s Matthew Forbes to create some dazzling puppetry which will absolutely wow our audiences!”
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit svr.co.uk.
