London cabbies' Christmas lights tour

London's black cab drivers have brought some extra Christmas magic to children receiving treatment at Great Ormond Street Hospital, taking young patients and their families on a special tour of the capital's festive lights.

Eight children and their families were collected from the central London hospital in black cabs transformed for the occasion with Christmas lights, tinsel and festive decorations.

The volunteer drivers then took their passengers through some of London's best-known streets to see the Christmas displays, including the spectacular illuminations around Regent Street, Oxford Street and Piccadilly Circus.

For families whose children have spent weeks or months in hospital, it was far more than an ordinary sightseeing journey.

It provided an opportunity to leave the hospital environment temporarily and enjoy something together as a family at Christmas.

Among the passengers was three-year-old Alfie from south-east London, who had been receiving treatment at Great Ormond Street Hospital since June.

Alfie is being treated for XIAP deficiency, a rare genetic immune disorder that affects the body's ability to regulate its immune response.

The condition can cause serious complications, and Alfie underwent a bone marrow transplant in July in an attempt to treat it.

Complications following the procedure meant his stay at Great Ormond Street became much longer than his family had originally hoped.

By Christmas, he had already spent around six months in hospital and was expected to remain there until approximately the end of January.

For a three-year-old, that is an enormous part of his young life.

Alfie's extended hospital stay also meant considerably less time with his older brothers, Teddie and Bobby.

The Christmas cab tour gave all three boys, together with their parents Kathleen and Chris, a rare opportunity to enjoy a festive activity as a family.

Because Alfie's medical condition means crowded environments can be difficult, many of the Christmas activities families might normally take for granted were simply not practical.

There had been no conventional trip to see Father Christmas and no busy festive outing or ice-skating trip.

Instead, the black cab became their own private window onto Christmas in London.

Alfie's mother Kathleen explained that simply being able to do something seasonal together was what made the evening so important.

After months in which hospital life had inevitably dominated the family's routine, the journey gave them something different to look forward to and, importantly, a Christmas memory they could share.

The choice of vehicle proved particularly appropriate for Alfie.

His family said he is fascinated by vehicles, making the opportunity to travel through London in a black cab an attraction in itself.

Even better, the cab used for the journey had a glass roof.

That allowed Alfie and his family to look upwards at the Christmas decorations and lights as the taxi travelled through central London.

Among the displays that particularly impressed the family was Fortnum & Mason's famous Christmas façade, transformed into a giant illuminated Advent calendar for the festive season.

For a child who had spent so much of the year inside hospital, being driven beneath London's Christmas lights created a very different view of the city.

The journey was organised by London cabbie Lee McQueen, who made sure the experience began the moment the family stepped into his taxi.

With help from his wife and children, his cab was decorated for Christmas before the trip.

Santa hats were placed on the seats, festive stickers decorated the windows and Christmas music played inside.

There were also chocolates, sweets and drinks for the children.

Kathleen described the experience as making the family feel like royalty.

But behind the decorations was something much more important: an attempt to give children undergoing serious medical treatment a few hours when the focus wasn't on appointments, procedures and hospital routines.

McQueen did not make the journey alone.

Seven other London taxi drivers volunteered their time and vehicles, allowing eight children and their families to take part.

The drivers had something else in common.

They had completed tour-guide training through the Worshipful Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers, meaning they could combine the Christmas lights journey with their knowledge of London.

When McQueen asked whether they would help, he said the response was immediate.

The drivers volunteered without hesitation.

The resulting tour on 29 November lasted almost two hours and took the families past some of London's most recognisable festive displays.

The event also continued a long association between London's cab trade and Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Generations of London taxi drivers have been known for offering support to children and families travelling to the hospital.

McQueen said he follows the longstanding cabbie tradition of not charging when a passenger gets into his taxi with a child and asks to be taken to Great Ormond Street Hospital for treatment.

For him, the connection goes back even further.

He remembers putting money into Great Ormond Street Hospital charity collection boxes when he was a child and has continued supporting the charity as an adult.

The Christmas lights tour provided another way of helping.

McQueen, a father of two from Brentwood in Essex, had been driving a London black cab for nine years when he organised the event.

He had also recently qualified as a London tour guide through the Worshipful Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers.

London cabbies already possess an extraordinary level of geographical knowledge through learning The Knowledge, the famously demanding process required to become an All London taxi driver.

Tour-guide training adds another dimension, allowing drivers to tell passengers about the history and stories behind the streets and landmarks they pass.

For the Christmas outing, that combination made the taxis particularly well suited to giving families their own private tour of the capital.

London's traditional taxis also have practical advantages when transporting passengers with additional mobility requirements.

Modern black cabs are designed to be wheelchair accessible and incorporate features such as ramps and handrails.

Their passenger compartments provide considerable space compared with many conventional cars.

For children who may need additional assistance, those features can make journeys easier.

For this particular event, the ability to keep each family together in its own vehicle also meant they could experience the Christmas lights without having to join crowded public spaces.

That was especially important for children whose medical circumstances could make busy environments unsuitable.

McQueen organised the tour in cooperation with the hospital's play team after first approaching Great Ormond Street around a year earlier.

The play team, supported by Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity, helps make lengthy hospital stays more manageable for children.

At Christmas, that can include festive parties, presents, carol singing and visits from Father Christmas.

These activities take on particular importance for children who cannot simply leave hospital and enjoy the festivities taking place outside.

For some patients, the ward effectively becomes home during Christmas.

Giving them opportunities to play, celebrate and take part in seasonal activities can bring a degree of normality to what can otherwise be an extremely difficult period.

The impact of a serious childhood illness extends to the entire family.

Parents may spend weeks or months alongside their child in hospital, while siblings can have far less time together than usual.

Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity supports projects intended to make those circumstances a little easier.

Charitable donations can, for example, help provide accommodation for parents and other loved ones, allowing families to remain close to children receiving treatment.

At Christmas that might mean a parent being there for a bedtime story on Christmas Eve or arriving early enough to watch their child open a stocking on Christmas morning.

The charity also helps support research and work towards new treatments for rare and complex childhood conditions.

Londoners see black cabs thousands of times every day.

They are as familiar to the capital as red buses, the Underground and London's famous landmarks.

But on this occasion, eight taxis became something rather different.

Decorated with Christmas lights and filled with festive music, they provided children and their families with a temporary escape from hospital life.

For Alfie's family, the significance was not really about which Christmas display was the biggest or brightest.

It was about all five members of the family being together and doing something normal at Christmas.

After months dominated by treatment, the opportunity to sit together, eat sweets, listen to Christmas music and watch the lights of London through the taxi windows became something memorable.

The November outing may also be only the beginning.

McQueen hopes to organise the Christmas lights tour again and wants to make it bigger in future years.

The other seven drivers involved are also interested in taking part again.

His ambition is to turn the initiative into an annual event and eventually offer the experience to even more Great Ormond Street families.

For the cabbies involved, volunteering was described not as an obligation but as a privilege.

And that perhaps captures what made the evening special.

London's black cab drivers spend their working lives transporting people around the capital.

For one evening, eight of them used those same vehicles, their knowledge of London and a few Christmas decorations to give children going through extraordinarily difficult circumstances a journey they could simply enjoy.

At Christmas, sometimes the most memorable journeys aren't about getting from A to B at all.

The story is also a reminder of the important human side of London's professional driving community.

Taxi, private hire and chauffeur drivers meet people at every stage of life — travelling for work, beginning holidays, returning home, visiting family or attending hospital appointments.

Most journeys are routine.

Some are anything but.

For the children and families from Great Ormond Street Hospital, this particular journey offered something that had been difficult to find during months of medical treatment: a chance to experience Christmas together.

Written by Airports Transfer for passengers travelling to and from London airports.