THE two herds of elephants which make Elmer’s Great North Parade will be brought together for a special farewell event in November.

On Saturday 9 and Sunday 10, the 50 large and 114 small sculptures, will gather for a final celebration at Newcastle Racecourse.

It is the last chance to see each of the individually decorated sculptures before they go up for auction on 12 November, there will be a whole host of family events.

The first hour on the Sunday will be a relaxed environment for those who find busy environments challenging.

For children there will be fairground rides, face painting, music and entertainment while adults can browse stalls selling a wide range of gifts, arts and crafts along with locally produced food and drink.

The full range of Elmer’s Great North Parade merchandise will also be on sale, giving fans the chance to snap up a souvenir of the trail.

Many of the artists who decorated the Elmer sculptures, based on David McKee’s popular storybook character will also be there, displaying other examples of their work and signing souvenir guides of the Parade.

Jane Hogan, project lead for the parade, which is being held in support of St Oswald’s Hospice said:“And, of course, this will be the last chance for those who are following the trail on our app to gather the barcodes they need to complete it,”

“The elephants look even more spectacular when they are all gathered together and this is a great way to end what has been the most fantastic art trail I think the region has ever seen.”

Online tickets are £5 per adult age 16 and over, £3 per child ages four to 15 and children aged three and under go free.

A £16 family ticket admits up four people including at least one adult.

For more information visit https://www.stoswaldsuk.org/elmer/whats-on/elmers-farewell-weekend/

Online tickets will be available until 5 November, after which tickets can be paid for on the door.

To qualify for the early bird 10 per cent discount before 10 October apply promotional code EARLYBIRD10.