I took a sneak peek at Gromit Unleashed 3 and was blown away by the creativity- Aardman, Pixar, Dreamworks

The Grand Appeal unveiled a dozen incredible new unique character sculptures to mark the countdown to Gromit Unleashed 3, which will be hitting the streets of Bristol from Monday (June 30).

The beautiful sculptures included two exclusive designs by Wallace & Gromit co-creator Nick Park, alongside designs by, and in collaboration with, Sir Paul McCartney, Pixar, Lucasfilm (creators of Star Wars), Richard Curtis, Jorge R. Gutierrez, Aardman’s Peter Lord, and local artists.

The stunning sculptures were loaded onto the Harbour Steam Train, where Nick Park, sat at the helm of the iconic locomotive in the driver’s cab.

The train was parked at the front of MShed, where children from local schools taking part in the Gromit Unleashed Schools Programme celebrated its arrival.

One of the sculptures was lifted onto the harbour’s heritage cranes and another was sent off to its summer location onboard Bristol’s former fire-boat, the Pyronaut.

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The Gromit Unleashed 3 trail will run from Monday 30 June to Sunday 31 August. The trail will be followed by The Greatest Dog Show on Earth ® exhibition before all the sculptures are auctioned to raise money for The Grand Appeal, the Bristol Children’s Hospital Charity.

Visitors to the trail can tick off each sculpture via the official Gromit Unleashed 3 app, available on Apple and Android from Monday 30 June. A map of all sculptures will also be available from various locations around the city.

The partnership between The Grand Appeal and Aardman was first conceived in 1995 to help raise the money to build the Bristol Children’s Hospital on Upper Maudlin Street, Bristol.

Since then, £90 million has been raised for The Grand Appeal, the Bristol Children’s Hospital Charity and Cots for Tots, the dedicated charity for the Neonatal Intensive Care Ward at St Michael’s Hospital.

To keep up to date with the latest news from The Grand Appeal and Gromit Unleashed 3, visit www.gromitunleashed.org.uk and follow @TheGrandAppeal across Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube and @GromitUnleashed on Facebook and X.

Scroll through for 71 incredible photos from the event: