TransPennine Express (TPE) passengers are being invited to plan a ‘lovely day’ out.

To help them get the message out, they’ve sought out the catchy and upbeat Bill Withers classic from the 1970s.

The track has been used in a 30-second film, developed along with The&Partnership Manchester.

The film sees the return of a number of popular TPE characters, including bucket and spade as well as torch and battery.

The new campaign will run on TV, video on demand, as well as in newspapers and on radio, social and digital channels.

Digital displays on the TPE network will also feature the campaign, aimed at inspiring the public to enjoy a ‘lovely day’ out on the network which stretches from Liverpool Lime Street to Edinburgh Waverley, through Manchester, Leeds, York and Newcastle and from Glasgow Central and Edinburgh to Manchester Airport and Liverpool, via the West Coast Main Line.

The day trip campaign featured in TPE’s recently released blueprint to make journeys better.

Darren Higgins, Commercial Director at TransPennine Express, said: “We’re proud to unveil our new campaign centred around how we help bring people together – providing lovely days out to beautiful beaches, big cities, and country escapes.

“The campaign also sees the return of our loveable bucket and spade characters, along with a torch and battery enjoying a movie at the cinema, a paint pot and brush visiting an art gallery, and a set of bagpipes huffing and puffing on a countryside walk.

“We wanted to demonstrate that every meeting can have a little extra meaning when you take a train with TransPennine Express.”

Adam McGowan and Danny O’Keeffe, Associate Creative Directors at The&Partnership Manchester, added: “We wanted to show how we can all make the most of getting together across the region. It’s a campaign that’s packed full of little laughs and smiles along the way.

“We brought a new dimension to these characters, making them miniature and using stop-motion – which is a real labour of love. The attention to detail and level of craft involved is unbelievable. Catherine Prowse and her team at Blinkink did such a great job of bringing it all to life.”