A well-known Bridlington Old Town resident has celebrated his 88th birthday in style. Scrap metal merchant Donny Wilkinson was treated by his family to a traditional landau ride around the town… not once but twice. Having owned landaus and horses, Donny was delighted to take up the reins and be chauffeured around the area by his friend Mick Nicholls, who had made the trip over from Blackpool with one of his horses.
Daughter Tracy Taylor explained: “Mick had brought his horse over with him, and we asked if he would fancy yoking up to one of our landaus (that haven’t seen the light of day for over 25 years) as a surprise for our dad’s 88th birthday.
“We decided to go out on Saturday, even though dad’s birthday wasn’t until Monday, as the weather was in our favour.
“We followed some of the routes that dad used to take when he took visitors to Bridlington out on trips back in the day. We even stopped for an ice cream and then headed back home to Old Town.”
Along the route, the group stopped at the Ship Inn at Sewerby and then trotted along Limekiln Lane, past the Expanse Hotel and then on through the town center to the South Side of Bridlington. The tradition of owning and driving landaus has been in the Wilkinson family for generations, dating back to the late 1800s. Donny drove the carriages for tourists until his mid-seventies and also catered for funerals and weddings.
Added Tracy, who runs Wilkinson’s Scrap Metal with her father and grandson Oliver: “Northside near to Kiddies Corner was where our landaus used to stand waiting for passengers, and Southside was where the Nicholls family used to stand.”
And on the following Monday, with the weather still being fine, Donny and his family took to the road and did it all again.
“We made some great memories that dad won’t forget. We saw many people who remembered the landaus, which brought the nostalgic tradition back to people’s attention.”
