On Air Now Alex Cann 9:00pm - 11:00pm
Now Playing Joan Armatrading Natural Rhythm

'Reindeer' riders bringing festive cheer to Tameside towns

Thursday, 10 December 2020 15:11

More 'reindeer riders' took to the streets at the weekend to entertain the young and young at heart.

No less than three teams of riders headed out and about around Droylsden and Ashton.

More than 30 riders in all and their ‘reindeer’ are saddling up all this month, on a mission to parade along 300 streets across local towns to spread some festive cheer.

Mandy Warbuton of Bailey’s Farm first took the idea public, creating a dedicated Facebook page, ‘The Reindeer are coming to Droylsden’, to detail their routes. 

With riders from several farms, they meet every Sunday morning - with three teams heading out at the weekend.

They headed around as many streets as possible in Droylsden and also took in the Crowhill estate in Ashton, much to the delight of appreciative residents.

1 of 84

More Galleries

The Leap Centre
MEMORIAL GARDENS PEACE TREE
@exploringbyjake
REINDEER RIDES CROWHILL ESTATE 2020 (1)

Share

The riders have decked their horses and ponies out in bells, lights, tinsel and antlers, with their riders also donning festive costume.

Nicola Worswick, the parent of one of the riders, said: “We’ve done this because of the last lockdown and to cheer everybody up. We even got a request to do a special visit for a girl who had leukemia, and it was lovely to see her face light up.”

The rides can last three to five hours and have become far bigger than Nicola anticipated, with families lining the streets especially to see and record the spectacle. 

Keep up to date on their flight path at: https://zh-hk.facebook.com/groups/912952429108530/

Images by Nigel Wood

Share

More from Tameside Reporter

Weather

  • Sun

    11°C

  • Mon

    13°C

  • Tue

    17°C

  • Wed

    16°C

  • Thu

    15°C