Magical time had by all aboard Wizard's Express

The hugely popular Wizard's Express took around 600 wizards and witches of all ages on a magical and unforgettable journey from "Wandsford" to Peterborough at the weekend.

Nene Valley Railway's Jerry Thurston said the trips on both Friday and Saturday nights had gone off without a hitch and that a lot of fun was had by all - staff and volunteers included.

"It was really, really good," he said.

"Even the volunteers and staff made an effort to dress up.

"That's the great thing about it, usually everyone gets involved, sometimes even the driver and firemen."

Held over two nights - October 26 and 27 - the steam hauled Wizard's Express departed from "Wandsford" at 7pm and travelled to Peterborough before returning.

"The journey lasted about an hour and a half and over the two nights we had about 600 passengers," said Jerry.

"It's designed to be fun, not terrifyingly scary."

He said passengers varied in age from an eight-week old baby "right up to three adult parties and everything in between".

"Older children love it as much as the younger kids," said Jerry.

"You get these hard to impress 12 and 13 year old girls loving it and having a lot if fun.

"Some of the costumes were just incredible and people went to a lot of effort."

He said the Wizard's Express had been running for five years after it had "morphed out of a traditional Halloween celebration into something that is working extremely well".

"It's continuing to change and a lot of effort goes into making the event as authentic as possible," he said.

A new feature for 2018 included the Wandsford Wizarding Station Masters office while Halloween goody gags, including glow sticks for children, were handed out.

Jerry said the last ticket was sold 10 days before the event and each year it grew in popularity.

"We're already planning for next year and I would recommend to anyone wanting a ticket to start looking around mid-summer.

"But we need to say a massive thanks to all the volunteers who helped out this year. Everyone's effort was just amazing."