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October 2nd saw 100
taxis filled with children suffering from life threatening illnesses
being transported to a weekend they will never forget. The day began
early as everyone arrived for The Big Breakfast send off.
This event sees noise levels increase along with the excitement. The
scale of the send off always takes the invited sponsors and
dignitaries aback and there were some short speeches of thanks and
good wishes. But all the children wanted to do was get into their
taxis and begin the journey to the Disneyland theme park in Paris.
The Lady Mayoress of the City of London, Lin Luder, cut the ribbon to mark the start of the convoy. It was led by The Master of The Worshipful Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers and his wife in a cab driven by the Beadle, John Sheen. Behind them were the 100 taxis (and as usual many from DaC), police cars – including police outriders from both the UK and France - London Ambulance vehicles, AA breakdown trucks and vehicles supplied by Kia and Honda to support the trip. The PCO’s recently appointed Director of Taxi and Private Hire, John Mason, was invited to watch the trip depart. He told us: "TfL and the PCO are delighted to support this great event, which has in the past brought a lot of joy to thousands of children. For some of these children it will have been their first time in a cab and their first time abroad, which makes it even more special." Office workers arriving at Canary Wharf to begin their day were soon caught up in the excitement, waving to the convoy as it left on its way to Dover. During the trip, the police stopped traffic to allow the convoy to drive safely down to the port. Once aboard the P&O Ferry, packed lunches were consumed, |
Magical taxi tour to Disneyland Paris |
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 DaC’s Dennis Heavin (A01) with some friends. But who planted the smacker on his forehead!!!! |
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Of course he’s a real mouse! Lots of mice wear bow ties...
photographs and joining in the disco. |
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friendships formed and
acquaintances renewed. On arrival in Calais it was a sunny afternoon and the convoy reformed and headed
towards Paris. At a refreshment and refuelling stop, the children
were entertained by clowns and characters at the French service area
before setting off again. The sun was setting over The Magical Kingdom as the convoy arrived and its passengers disembarked their cabs ready for dinner. Although the children (and drivers!) may have been tired, the excitement was still evident as everyone checked into their rooms. On Saturday morning, the weather was kind and soon the hotel was left deserted as everyone left to enjoy a day in the Disneyland Paris Park. There were smiling faces everywhere as the children, drivers and carers went on the rides and watched the shows. The main parade of the afternoon was one of the highlights |
for many, before leaving to go
back to the hotel to prepare for a Gala Dinner.
This dinner had some extra special guests as Disney characters came
and joined the children, posing forone of the 16 Magical Taxi Tours.
Special thanks must go to the drivers who go more than an extra mile
to make the trip such a success. Speeches at Canary Wharf and at the
Gala Dinner thanked everyone involved and there are so many
different strands that pull together to make this such a wonderful
trip. Since it began in 1994, around 3,200 sick children have
enjoyed the annual Children’s Magical Taxi Tour, organised by
the Worshipful Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers. Cover pic: Monsieur Brian With (Y84) and Monsieur Phil Davis (F10 and Chairman of the Disney Committee) doing their best to recreate something or other…! Sandie Goodwin |
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