Was on a train yesterday and a woman got on with a penguin!

[VivaLeBeaver]

Sat on the train and a woman comes racing up with a bundle under her arm. Sits down with this thing wrapped in a jumper which is sort of growling and hissing. The guard comes over for her money and she tells him she's got a penguin and she's taking it to the zoo which is at the next stop.

Guard looks a bit closer at the bird and points out that its a guillimot not a penguin. I'm now wetting myself with laughter. The woman asks the guard if the guillimot would have escaped from the zoo. The guard tells her its a wild bird and to go and put it back on the beach. She'd tied it's beak up and everything with a shoelace!!!!

I hope the poor bird is OK after been scooped up by a barmy OAP but it was so funny.

God love her with her loose shoe. I'm very impressed that you checked.

Not so much p-p-p-pick up a penguin as g-g-g-grab a guillemot!

Brilliantly bonkers, love it! [bugrin]

That is the funniest thing I have read in ages! It took me three goes to tell DH as well honeydragon.

lololol

Thanks Viva! Love it.

Thank you...that is just totally wonderfully brilliant. I am still giggling about it and about nickschick wanting us all to carry a jumper and shoelace about in case we spot a penguin. Perhaps that should be the official MN secret signal...the single shoelace

I am roaring at the "growling and hissing" from under the old lady sweater and "tied up its beak with a shoelace"

Resourceful lady wasn't she?

Even dh is phsl now.

Brilliant. Just brilliant. I just got a bit hysterical trying to explain this thread to DH and now have tears rolling down my face. I can just picture a crestfallen old lady shuffling back off down the beach with the hissing jumper and one loose shoe.

Also that she thought one of those seaside trains was the most speedy method of rushing to the zoo with her rescued penguin!

Thanks for such a good laugh!

guillemot

penguin

Was all the hissing and growling because it was out of breath or was it just Puffin??

Ah god, this is vv funny, they do look a lot like those little penguins though.

This has to go into Classics!

[bugrin]

Ive had to come back with ds3 as this thread makes me so happy .

stupid woman. The thing will probably die of fright after that.

"shit. has anyone seen my mother recently?"

Why's that PrincessCervix - are you worried she's been kidnapped and put on a train by an old lady and had her beak tied up? :o

Hee hee!

To be fair to your OAP, a guillemot doesn't look entirely dissimilar to a blue penguin:

<a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.nz/imgres?imgurl=www.doc.govt.nz/upload/36300/blue-penguin-223.jpg&imgrefurl=www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/native-animals/birds/sea-and-shore-birds/penguins/penguins/facts/blue-penguin-korora/&h=176&w=223&sz=16&tbnid=piw80jkaWsv4LM:&tbnh=84&tbnw=107&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dblue%2Bpenguin%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=blue+penguin&usg=__sfuUoI6xSG3T1SvEpoq8gXbm1Us=&sa=X&ei=kO6zTaLiAYnUtQPF-63ZCw&ved=0CDEQ9QEwAw" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">blue penguin

But then as blue penguins only live in NZ and Oz, perhaps I'm being too generous!

Blue Guillemots are Guillemots that are going blue because their beaks are tied up with shoelaces.

beautyspot [bugrin] I love it! I bet it spent the rest of the day muttering to itself and kicking over small children's sandcastles!

Im still laughing and have just been relaying this to my dear old fil who is 81 .......hes informed me he carries dried rice dog food sticks and sugar lumps in case of emergency (?).....hes not sure the shoelace was a good idea nor wether guillemots are legally allowed on trains ........ its going to be a long Easter Sunday ......

omg hes just shouted to me to ask where she found it??? dare I say sainsburys??

It was Bridlington beach where she found it, North Beach I believe.

Now I want Mumsnet to have a penguin emoticon that we can use insert into threads when someone has got the total wrong end of the stick or has gone completely bonkers...