York will premiere a road movie later this month. CHRIS TITLEY meets the stars.

IT began as just another challenge over a beer. In the front bar of York's Blue Bell, Steve Morrison asked his mate Neil Watson if he would walk across England with him.

"He said, 'No, but I will ride it on a bike with you'," recalled Steve.

Most pub dares are forgotten two pints down the line. Not this one. Six years and countless saddle-sore miles later, that exchange has spawned thousands of pounds for local charities and, magnificently, its very own movie.

Not bad for a group of men aged between 40 and 55 with a shared fondness for beer.

The road to movie stardom began in 1999. For that first summer cycle ride Steve, managing director of MOR Music on Fossgate, and fellow Yorkshire businessman Neil, quickly recruited two more friends to the cause. Civil servant Syd Scott and Graham "Chaddie" Chaddock, a teacher at Scarborough College, made up the stalwart quartet who cycled coast-to-coast, from Workington to Tynemouth.

They enjoyed it so much, they decided to do it again the following year, this time in Scotland. And soon the legend of the "Ales Angels" grew.

By the time they departed on last September's journey, the quartet had become six, thanks to the addition of two pub landlords. The Blue Bell's own Jim Hardie, and Dave "Fozzie" Foster, of the Golden Ball, Bishophill, saddled up for the angels' flight from Edinburgh to York.

"I only agreed to do it if Steve bought me a pushbike," confessed Fozzie.

This time the easy riders had company. Chris Brooke, media graduate and Blue Bell barman, agreed to shoot the whole shebang on broadcast quality cameras.

Good as his word, he assembled a crew: cameraman Paul Bittlestone, and Graham Hughes as frontman and interviewer.

For Graham, actor, pub regular and, at 3ft 11ins tall, "Britain's smallest barman" during Blue Bell beer festivals, this was very different to other films he has worked on, including the latest Harry Potter. What was his worst moment?

"There were lots of worst moments," he sighed. "The number of times we got lost and hadn't a clue where we were... We didn't even have a map, we had to go out and buy one."

Graham's friends were always on hand to help out, mind.

"We booked into the Grand Hotel at Tynemouth," Steve said. "For some reason, I couldn't remember Chris or Graham's surnames.

"So I said to the woman at reception that a Mr Tall and Mr Small would be booking in shortly. She went, 'you are kidding me'; I said, no.

"When they arrived I shouted to them, 'Mr Tall, Mr Small, come in!'"

Turning their adventures into a movie was another of those pub fantasies that this crew have a knack of making reality. What began as a joke evolved into a plan to capture a camcorder keepsake of their trip - then turned into a widescreen spectacular.

"It's quite a miracle it all happened," said Steve over a pint in, where else, the Blue Bell. "We had talked about it as a joke: wouldn't it be marvellous to make a movie? And it's happened."

Ales Angels: The Movie (poster slogan: "Houston, we have a puncture") premieres at City Screen, Coney Street, with two screenings on Tuesday, March 29. Everyone is welcome: all profits to charity, of course.

And York cinemagoers may find themselves sitting next to the Hollywood elite. Invitations to the screenings have been sent to Paul Newman, an old friend of the Blue Bell's, who has sent personal donations to the pub's charity work; and to film directors David Lean and Martin Scorcese. The latter's invite should "make up for the disappointment of not getting the Oscar for The Aviator," believes Jim.

The Ales Angels caper is Chris's fourth documentary, and he describes it as a road movie with a difference. To make it a truly York experience, the soundtrack is performed by four city artists, including Hayley Hutchinson and Kantz.

"It's kind of nice in that it's come full circle, making a film about what I know - this pub," Chris mused.

"That being said, it's not like it's a serious film or anything. It's a bit of a daft exercise."

Not daft enough to stop national broadcasters sniffing around with a view to putting it on telly. But Chris is playing that down.

As you might expect, the film was beset by hitches. Early on the van carrying all the equipment caught fire. Later, Chris set up a beautiful shot of the angels cycling through Bamburgh in Northumberland as the sun set behind the castle. Only one problem - the angels were obliviously enjoying a picnic some miles away.

Having clocked up hundreds of cycle miles is no mean feat for middle-aged fellas on ordinary bikes who would never consider themselves fitness fanatics. Before he got on his cycle for the English coast-to-coast challenge, keen footballer Syd was sure he was robust enough to cope. His confidence didn't last.

"The first day I was lying in a ditch after about five miles in the burning heat wanting to go home," he said.

Syd, a Scouser who works for the Crown Prosecution Service in Piccadilly, found the going got easier. Which was just as well, considering his ability to get lost. On the trip from London he took an eight-mile unscheduled detour.

Despite their shared love of the ale, the angels ration themselves each night of the trip so they can cope with the next day's demands. "When we actually finish, we drink as much as we like," noted Syd.

The camaraderie between the Ales Angels keeps them pedalling. "I was always last home," said Fozzie. "But nobody gave me any stick about it."

"We actually thought he had died in a French bus shelter once," chipped in Jim. "He collapsed with exhaustion wearing a bandana."

The Ales Angels all have different favourite moments from their cycle rides. For Jim it was sipping green chartreuse outside the Angel in Easingwold with only 12 miles to the York finish line.

Syd nominated the beauty of Northumberland.

As for Fozzie, "the highlight was Steve running me a red hot bath - a scalding hot bath - without being asked".

They will see their movie for the first time at its public screening. "It looks very funny," said Graham, who has been doing the voice-over. "It's Spinal Tap on two wheels."

The premiere promises to be quite an occasion. For once they are ditching their bikes and travelling to the premiere in star style... by stretch limousine.

But this isn't the end of the cycle track for the Ales Angels. They are already planning their next venture - across Scotland by pedalo. This jaunt, along the Caledonian canal and Loch Ness, is also being filmed.

Naturally, they already have a title for the sequel: Spoke On The Water.

Ales Angels: The Movie is on at City Screen on Tuesday March 29 at 6.30pm and 7.30pm. Tickets, priced at £6.50 (+ concessions) are available at the Blue Bell, the Golden Ball and from the cinema. The DVD will soon be on sale at the pubs. Profits to Guide Dogs For The Blind and Hearing Dogs For The Deaf.

Ales Angels, from 1999 to today

1999

Steve Morrison, Neil Watson, Syd Scott and Graham Chaddock cycle coast-to-coast across England. They raise £800

2000

The same quartet traverse Scotland, raising £1,400

2001

Jim Hardie joins them for the Galway to Dublin escapade. Charity total: £1,900

2002

The famous five zoom from London to York, and bring back £6,500

2003

Dave "Fozzie" Foster signs up for the London to Paris jaunt, and they raise £5,000

2004

The sensational six are filmed as they travel from Edinburgh to York. Cash raised so far: £5,000

Updated: 08:58 Tuesday, March 22, 2005