AA 'rescues broken-down Red Dwarf Starbug' at Angel of the North as fan headed to Comic Con

It was an out-of-this world call for this breakdown company.

By The Newsroom
Thursday, 27th June 2019, 1:30 pm
Updated Thursday, 27th June 2019, 11:27 pm
AA mechanic George Flinton helped out Red Dwarf fan Alex Dowling, after he broke down near the Angel of the North while driving to Glasgow Comic Con. The sci-fi fan had remodelled his car to look like the show’s famous Starbug spaceship at The Angel of The North, near Newcastle. Scott Heppell/PA Wire

The AA was scrambled to the Angel of the North after a sci-fi fan broke down in his Red Dwarf-themed ‘spaceship’, according to a PR agency representing the company.

The driver, Alex Dowling, was heading to the Glasgow Comic Con, which starts on Saturday June 29, to join thousands of others at the comic book and cosplay festival.

Though on closer inspection we suspect this may be a publicity stunt, it made an impressive site nonetheless.

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AA mechanic George Flinton helped out Red Dwarf fan Alex Dowling, after he broke down near the Angel of the North while driving to Glasgow Comic Con. The sci-fi fan had remodelled his car to look like the show’s famous Starbug spaceship at The Angel of The North, near Newcastle. Scott Heppell/PA Wire

George Flinton, AA mechanic, from York, was “sent to the rescue”.

He said: “It’s not every day you get to repair a giant green spaceship that’s broken down on the side of the road! It was definitely one of the most extraordinary recoveries I’ve had to do in my career, and one I won’t forget.”