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Fancy dress swimmers take Christmas Day dip

PA Media Lots of people with colourful swim caps on a lake being led by a woman dressed with a Christmas tree swimming costume and head displayPA Media
PA Media Dozens of people in swimming costumes - some in fancy dress - stand on a pontoon ready to enter a lakePA Media
Trees-y does it for swimmers taking a dip as part of the Serpentine Swimming Club's traditional Christmas Day Peter Pan Cup race
Swimmers in the Hyde Park event get ready to dip a toe - or more - in the lake's waters

Turkeys, knights of old and even an oven were just some of the festive fancy dress choices by those taking part in outdoor swims on Christmas Day.

Plucky bathers took to the sea off Dorset, Devon and Norfolk as well as the Serpentine lake for the traditional Peter Pan Cup race in London's Hyde Park.

Sea surface temperatures across the country were between 8C and 11C, the Met Office said.

The race in the capital is believed to be the world's oldest continuously contested swimming competition, having been run since 1864.

It has been associated with the author JM Barrie since 1903, when he donated the Peter Pan Cup.

Luke Belfield, who is training to become the first person with arthritis to swim the English Channel, said: "It's a community, there's still people in there, they're so friendly, so vibrant, so lovely.

"It was actually quite mild, but I am starting to shiver a little bit."

Katy Irving, who was taking part for the third time, said dealing with the cold got easier the more times you did it.

"Your body gets used to it," she added.