The original lolcat.
Big cat sightings intrude into the pages of local newspapers with such regularity that we're beginning to suspect these stories are actually coded messages between members of a spy ring. A Puma, spotted at night in Bexleyheath, means the documents have been recovered, come quickly, while a cougar in Romford is an instruction to flee now. What message, then, are we to decrypt form the sighting of a giant panther between junctions 18 and 19 of the M25, as reported in the Watford Observer?
Karen Thompson was 'stunned' to see a large black cat prowling along the perimeter of a field between the junctions. Actually, large doesn't do it justice. Here's her description:
"It was about 50 feet away and was far, far bigger than any dog - about ten times bigger."
Which would make the beast about three storeys tall and as long as a bendy bus. Yikes. Anyone planning to recreate Iain Sinclair's London Orbital walks, make sure you take Digby with you.
This is only the latest and largest in a litany of exotic London felids. We've previously encountered the Beast of Sydenham, mapped the Beast of Bexley, and found a mystical correlation in its range. Or maybe we're part of that spy network too.
