Fireman Sam was the hottest ticket in town for children enjoying some half term fun at Stretford Mall.
The children's TV character and "hero next door" drew hundreds of people to the shopping centre for a series of appearances through out the day.
Several children were dressed up as Fireman Sam, as queued up to meet their screen idol.
Among those who came specially to see him was little River Maas, aged 3 from Flixton, who is a huge fan of the TV series.
River's mum Justine Oiver, a regular shopper at Stretford Mall said: "I had to bring River because Fireman Sam is his favourite thing in the whole world.
"He went straight up to him and gave him a big hug and tried to pull him over!
"There's been a really good atmosphere, very busy.
"I've seen lots of people I know who've brought their children, and some people who didn't know about it before came down too, because people have been texting them letting them know what's going on."
Fireman Sam made several appearances during the day on Thursday between 11am and 3pm.
Mike Russell, Operations Manager at Stretford Mall said: "It's been a great turn out, probably one of the best events we've run yet.
"It's always nice to see the children's faces when we have an event like this at Stretford Mall.
"A lot of them dressed up today, and there were quite a few who were just bursting with excitement as they waited for their turn to have their photo taken.
"We think it's important to put on free events for families to help with entertaining the children during the school break.
"We're pleased so many children got to meet Fireman Sam, and we're looking forward to announcing more events this summer."
