Vandals block toilets and release handbrake on North Yorkshire Moors Railway carriage at Pickering Station

The culprits even released the handbrake on the rolling stock, meaning the carriage drifted around a foot from where it had been parked.

The carriage is used on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway was was stored in sidings at Pickering Station's yard when the incident took place between 4.30pm on Friday November 13 and 4pm on Sunday November 15.

The vandals gained entry to the carriage, caused damage to a chair's leg, broke and smashed lampshades on several tables, threw first aid kits onto the floor and blocked two toilets.

North Yorkshire Police are reviewing CCTV footage of the area.

It's not the first time the heritage railway has been targeted by criminals. In 2017, a set of eight teak carriages that had been restored by the LNER Coach Association were severely damaged by vandals who gained entry to the sidings at Pickering. The carriages, dating from the 1930s, had appeared on screen in Downton Abbey and Dad's Army.

One of the carriages was so badly damaged that it did not return to service until 2019, and had to undergo a major overhaul. Two 17-year-old boys were spoken to by police over the incident.

Witnesses or anyone with information about the latest incident are urged to email Craig Hardcastle at [email protected] quoting reference number 12200201404.