HE is widely recognised as the founding father of the package holiday, and travel pioneer Thomas Cook is now being honoured by a museum exhibition.

The remarkable story of Cook, whose first rail excursion eventually spawned a multi-billion pound industry, is told at the National Railway Museum, in York.

In the summer of 1841, the Leicestershire woodcraftsman-turned- printer organised a rail trip from Leicester to Loughborough for 500 people attending a temperance fete.

Within five years, he was the agent for regular rail package tours and in 1851 took more than 150,000 workers from Yorkshire and the Midlands to the Great Exhibition in London.

Mr Cook's Extraordinary Adventures, which includes a play charting the development of the package holiday, runs at the museum until Friday and will be repeated on Bank Holiday Monday.

Bob Gwynne, of the National Railway Museum, said: "The railways played a vital role in the development of today's package holiday industry and Thomas Cook is generally recognised as the 'father' of it all.

"One hundred and sixty years after Cook's first excursion we are aiming to bring his story to life through what we hope will prove to be entertaining and educational theatre performances."