Heli-Santa Returns

Father Christmas made an unusual, and rather loud, appearance here just before Christmas, landing his chopper in the middle of the estate before giving an assembly at a near by school! Conditions were far from ideal, with grey skies and high winds at Biggin Hill, Santa’s pick up point, and a similar outlook in Brixton for the drop off.

While nervous parent volunteers paced up and down, we got the call from the North Pole that it was going ahead and children began streaming out of Christchurch Primary before encircling the park in the middle of Myatts Field North, vibrating with sheer excitement. As the thud of the helicopter rotors became audible, the children (and some of the adults) literally bounced up and down with enthusiasm, the powerful downdraft knocking over my bike in the process of a perfect landing, slap bang in the middle of the park, and to the visible relief of every grown up present.

Santa stepped triumphantly out onto terra firma and was met with delirious screams from 300 school pupils, and under intense scrutiny from Papa, who was there to pick up some tips for his own Father Christmas gig at the residents’ party that Friday.