WHEN Phil Ashlee sees a fire engine drive past, he views it with more than a passing interest.

The reason is that Phil, from Heighington village, near Darlington, has one of the region's best collections of model fire engines.

The 42-year-old has about 200 models of engines, from the UK and as far afield as Russia and China, where a lot of them were made.

Phil said: "It started when I was a child in Ipswich. It was a fascination. There was a fire station down the road.

"I used to go to watch the engines coming and going.

"As a kid I had quite a few model fire engines. I remember my sister buying me one for £2 when I was nine or ten and I was in heaven.

"As I grew older, the hobby progressed as I saw the different models which were available."

Phil has more than 150 model cars, plus railway engines and a range of toys from Thunderbirds to Captain Scarlet vehicles, and keep them in pristine condition.

He regularly adds to his collection by attending toy fairs and similar events.

Sometimes he stumbles across prized items - for instance, at a recent event in Bowburn, Durham, he bought a model fire engine depicting the one used at air displays by 1920s aviator Sir Alan Cobham, famed for his epic flights to Australia and South Africa.

Phil said: "There are some real gems to be found."