Meals on wheels: Severn Valley Railway driver uses steam engines to prepare dishes - with video

The 35-year-old from Kidderminster drives trains for CrossCountry, but also volunteers at Severn Valley Railway.

Watch the video here:

It may seem unusual to those of us more used to the electric hob but using the steam from the train's engine, Mr Christie regularly cooks up a variety of dishes with a difference.

He was partly inspired by a fellow steam enthusiast who showed him how to cook an onion in the hot pipe of the cab.

Through trial and error, he has perfected his on-board cooking, mastering an array of dishes.

He regularly serves them to his hungry colleagues at the heritage railway, with his steak casseroles and chicken dishes being particular favourites.

Mr Christie has also started filming his cooking exploits, which can be viewed on YouTube, and he is now hoping to get his own TV series.

Called Meals on Wheels, he is marketing it as the cooking show where steam engines are the main ingredient. "I've done this all around the country on different railways but it's a bit of a gamble on how long it takes to cook," said Mr Christie, who became a trainee train driver in 2004.

"I've done all sorts. It can taste a lot richer than cooking it the normal way.

"Filming the pilot episode, we went to Talyllyn railway in Wales, the first preserved railway in the world.

"We did a bit about the history of the railway and then the cooking. I cooked roast lamb. In the past, I've done a chicken in a white wine sauce and duck in hoisin sauce. I usually put it in during the morning as it can take hours to cook.

"Sometimes I've had to cook going downhill because the heat can be too intense going uphill. You have to make sure you wrap things up well. I cook for other people too. The record so far is 32 rashers of bacon on the shovel."

It is an idea he hopes will catch the imagination of the nation if producers allow him to make a TV series.