A determined couple hauled a real Christmas tree from a farm in rural Stirlingshire 450-miles home to London – on public transport.
Couple Ruth and Tigg Savery heaved the 5-foot fir tree on and off a ScotRail train, the Caledonian Sleeper and finally the London Underground to get to their home in the capital.
They had been visiting daughter Jackie, her husband Nigel and grandchildren James, 15, and Tilda, 13, in Killearn, west Stirlingshire, ahead of the festive period.
Each year, the family go to Duff Christmas Tree Farm, in Buchlyvie, to choose and cut down their own tree.
This year, they took Ruth and Tigg and when they saw the selection, the couple decided to pick their own to take home to Fulham, London.
Daughter Jackie, 48, told the Observer: “We always enjoy going to get a local Christmas tree from Duff’s each year. It’s great fun choosing your own tree and cutting it down with lots of family debate as to which tree to pick.
“However, this year my mum decided she wanted to pick a tree tand take it back with her to London.
“The only issue was, she was travelling on public transport – so the tree had to accompany her on ScotRail, the Caledonian Sleeper and finally the London tube.
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“The guys at the tree farm were great and packaged it all up for her with a giggle.
“They packed up our family tree for home and then took great care of the other tree ready for its slightly longer journey south.
“It got the train from Milngavie to Glasgow and then was ushered into its sleeper compartment at Glasgow Central. There were amused comments from fellow passengers when disembarking at Euston but, true to form, not an eyelid batted on the London Underground.”
After arriving home safely with her prized tree, Ruth told the Observer: “We went to the Christmas tree farm to get the family tree. We were astonished by all the activity and the scale of it all.
“I thought why not get our own tree whilst there and the family said emphatically no as it would be far too heavy and thoroughly silly.
“I selected one that was tall in relation to its size with slender trunk relatively few branches and my grandson cut it for me and it was duly encased in net at nominal cost.
“The travel was surprisingly easy. It sat in the corner of our sleeper berth without causing trouble in the night.
“One had to concentrate a bit on the escalators on the underground and through the automatic barriers. The tubes were empty going out towards Fulham.
“It has been a great success at home.”
One attendant on the Caledonian Sleeper at Glasgow Central even joked that there was “no extra charge” for Christmas trees.
During the long journey home, which took more than eight hours, Ruth snapped photos of the tree on its travels.
It was snapped leaving the farm, then at Glasgow Central Station, in front of the Caledonian Sleeper and then later laying across seats on the London Underground.
Finally, Ruth sent the family a festive snap of the tree in its new west London home, fully decorated.
Jackie added: “Thankfully it made it safely and is now decorated and standing proudly in a London terrace
house.”
Euan Duff, owner of the Duff Christmas Tree Farm said: “Although we supply quite a few garden centres down south, I think this is definitely the furthest an individual has taken a tree.
“And on public transport too!”
