Yorkshire Terrier becomes TV presenter to promote tourism

A Yorkshire Terrier named 'Yorkie' (of course!) has turned his hand to TV presenter - starring in his own promotional video for Visit York.

Visit York have shot three short films - hosted on You Tube - featuring Yorkie travelling across some of the very best areas the region has to offer.

This world-first travelogue series shows ‘Yorkie’ dressed in a specially fitted adventurer’s outfit, complete with Visit York and Yorkshire Rose pin badges.

Viewers can watch him strolling along the twisting, narrow lane of the Shambles in the centre of York, getting a ‘VIP guest’ dogs-eye view of the locomotives at the National Railway Museum, taking a scenic journey in the carriages of a steam train on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, meandering through the landscapes of the North York Moors National Park and roaming the ruins of Whitby Abbey.

The first episode of Yorkie’s travelogue series will be released in mid-August (release dates to be announced shortly), followed by two more episodes in September.

A little bit about Yorkie - he's not from Yorkshire!

Yorkie’s real name is Sunny, he is 8 years old, lives in Coventry and likes long walks around the countryside and playing with his toys in the garden.

  • Yorkshire Terriers are commonly referred to today as the “Yorkie”.

  • The English breed is no more than 100 years old and was originally bred for the purpose of catching rats in mines.

  • The ancestors of the Yorkshire Terrier are the Waterside Terrier, a small Scottish breed with a long blue-gray coat. The Waterside Terrier was brought to Yorkshire, England in the mid 19th century.

  • The Yorkie made its first appearance in England in 1861 during a bench show. At this time they were known as the “Broken-haired Scotch Terrier”.

  • The Yorkie kept this title for 9 years until during one show a reporter commented that the breed should be known as Yorkshire Terriers, because the breed had improved so much since their arrival in Yorkshire.

Watch the video here:

All about Yorkshire Terriers