What does Father Christmas get up to in his downtime?

It may surprise you to find out that he doesn’t spend ALL of his waking hours tuned into whether you’ve been bad or good.

Everyone has to relax somehow, and Santa Claus is now an Instagram influencer.

The man in red has been spotted at classic haunts around London including Richmond Park, the Natural History Museum and upmarket nightclub Annabel’s.

He has over 3,000 followers, who are interested in his exploits in the capital.

We spoke to the man behind the beard, Neil Andrews from Rotherhithe in London, who has been posting pictures on his feed since December 2017.

He told Metro.co.uk: ‘Instagram can be a bit too serious so I wanted to have a bit of fun. I bought a Santa suit, got some friends together and took pictures of Santa just wandering around London.’

Neil, 58, enlisted the help of friend Dimitar Hristov and partner Des Curran to realise his vision for each picture.

As you might expect, they get a lot of attention when posing in central London.

‘People are always asking for selfies,’ Neil said. ‘It seems to capture their imagination.

‘I was on the Strand the other day and I walked past a soup kitchen. A lady there asked if she could give me a hug. We spoke a little bit and she was really sweet – she whispered in my ear: “All I want for the New Year is health, prosperity and a new home.”

‘It was so touching. Christmas is a time for being kind to people and just doing something nice.’

Neil said he is always careful not to let children see him after he’s changed back into normal clothes or taken off his beard, so as not to ruin the magic for them.

And he stays in character if anyone comes up to him while in costume.

In his day job, Neil is a photographer and Instagrammer, who you can find on @mumhad1ofthose.

And of course, to follow Santa, click @santaclauslondon.

Source:
courtesy of METRO

by Jen Mills

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