Avanti West Coast transported a train full of dedicated Eurovision Song Contest “Superfans” to Liverpool on a special service for the start of the competition.

The super fan train was a huge success and featured on the BBC national 6pm and 10pm news, and despite the strikes, we moved more than 6,000 people from Liverpool by train on Sunday, the equivalent of the seated capacity at the Final itself.

More than 100 excited international fans boarded Avanti West Coast’s Pride Train at London Euston and were treated to a Eurovision themed journey as they sped their way to Liverpool.

Guests were also treated to a surprise visit from music producer, Pete Waterman who joined the train at Crewe and delighted fans with tales of Eurovision and his career in the pop.

Looking after the fans was train manager Jan Fuller-Green, himself a member of fans’ group OGAE and a veteran of two Eurovision events in Stockholm and Lisbon.

Guests, with the help of Network Rail and Liverpool City Council, were welcomed at Lime Street station by Lord Mayor, Councillor Roy Gladden, drag queen Jonny Woo, along with Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram and Culture Minister Stuart Andrew. They were then serenaded by the English National Opera with Abba’s hit Waterloo.

The Superfans are all members of The Organisation des Amateurs de l’Eurovision, or OGAE for short, the largest Eurovision Song Contest fan network in the world.  Founded in Finland in the 1980s, the network now includes more than 45 national clubs across Europe and beyond, with over 15,000 individual members.