WHEN wildlife experts and police carrying riot shields raced to a house in Plymouth, Devon, to answer a 999 call, they were in for a big surprise.
For, says the Daily Star, instead of finding an alligator in the garden, they discovered an inflatable crocodile.
The female occupier of the house is quoted as saying: “I was making my lunch in the kitchen and looked out into the back garden. It was pouring with rain and I saw what I thought was a crocodile in the garden.
“I went to my neighbour's house to ask if they would come and have a look at it. They did think it was a baby crocodile and suggested calling the RSPCA or the police, but we decided to call the police as I have a three-year-old and was worried.”
A police spokesperson commented: “Police officers attended and bravely investigated. The beast turned out to be an inflatable toy crocodile. Police have apprehended the crocodile.”
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Fancy a job with a Christmas flavour? A Daily Mirror story says that a garden centre in Titchfield, Hampshire is looking for two new members of staff to walk their reindeers during the busy Christmas period.
The reindeers will form the centrepiece of the garden centre's festive display. Successful applicants to the job will walk the reindeers in a paddock, feed them and introduce customers to them.
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The city of Manchester is renowned for its rain but the Manchester Evening News has run a story which says that after analysing Met Office records going back 1981, it turns out that Cardiff is the wettest city in the UK. Manchester has averaged just 86.7cms of rain every year compared with Cardiff's 115cms.
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Britain's first darts team for the blind has been launched, reports the Daily Mail.
A group of friends play at The Dolphin Inn in Grampound, Cornwall, by using string to help them find the bullseye.
Richard Pryor, Rachael Beresford, Carol Pirret and Sharon Waters call themselves 'The Optimists' and have admitted that some wayward darts have already caused damage to the inside of the pub.
They guide their darts with a piece of string attached to the board which helps them feel where it is. When a player heads to the line they grab the cord with their spare hand and throw with the other.
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Important news if you are planning to visit the popular seaside resort of Blackpool – they are planning to outlaw provocatively dressed hen and stag parties from the town centre during the day.
A story in The Independent says the town feels that drunken bachelor packs dressed in mankinis or bridal parties clad in revealing uniforms threaten the resort’s image as a family destination.
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Fans of Monty Python might be interested in a BBC story that two episodes of a 1960s TV comedy called At Last The 1948 Show, which featured John Cleese and Graham Chapman, have been found after almost 50 years.
The ITV sketch show, which was first screened in 1967, was influential for British comedy and led to the creation of Monty Python in 1969.
They were discovered by British Film Institute television consultant Dick Fiddy when he was invited to explore the collection of Sir David Frost, who died last August, and who was executive producer on the show.
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Retired primary school headteacher Norah Lawley has become Britain's oldest banned driver at the age of 86 after being handed five speeding tickets, reports the Daily Mail.
Her latest offence was being caught doing 48mph in a 30mph zone. She pleaded guilty to speeding and was banned from the road for six months.
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Finally, it seems that the Queen has posted her first tweet. According to the BBC, she tweeted: “It is a pleasure to open the Information Age exhibition today at the @ScienceMuseum and I hope people will enjoy visiting. Elizabeth R.”
The message - sent through the @BritishMonarchy account - heralded the launch of a major new exhibition at London's Science Museum.
Reference list:
The Independent (www.independent.co.uk)
Daily Mail (www.dailymail.co.uk)
Daily Mirror (www.mirror.co.uk)
Daily Star (www.daily star.co.uk)
BBC (www.bbc.co.uk)
Manchester Evening News (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)