"King Of Ruddington" A No-Show At His Own Birthday Party

15 July 2019, 16:06 | Updated: 15 July 2019, 16:22

A cat - known as the King of Ruddington - was a no-show at his own birthday party despite hundreds of admirers attending.

Wilbur - who's famous in the village for his visits to local shops - was thrown a fundraiser for his 10th birthday. 

However, the cat - who has his own Facebook page - didn't show with organiser Sarah Godrey telling PA:

"We all knew that he probably wouldn't (attend) but that's kind of why we like him, he's his own cat. 

"It's just been such a lovely community event, we've done really well with the fundraising - we're definitely going to be buying a new defibrillator."

Wilbur's original owner, Cathy Applebee, was certainly not surprised that he failed to show.

"It would be good if the cat had actually turned up, but he hasn't," she told PA. "It's a few too many people for him, I think. But there's a greater depth to it than just my cat. Ultimately we're raising money."

Despite Wilbur's no-show, his face was all over The Frame Breakers pub - with Wilbur themed cakes, masks, biscuits and ale all on offer for the hundreds that turned up.

"I think people are just a bit tired of what's going on in the news and they just needed to have a silly party," said Ms Godfrey. "But it's not that silly because it's raising money for a really good cause."

As for Wilbur's location at the time, reports suggest he was visiting one of Ruddington's other public houses.

"He was in the Red Lion pub earlier but he's not in there now," said Ms Applebee during the event.

"I went down to see if he wanted to come and blow out his candles but I couldn't find him."