London cat attempts to hitch ride to Manchester on top of Pendolino train
A London cat was spotted trying to hitch a free ride to Manchester on an Avanti West Coast train this week.
The feline was a whisker away from getting into serious trouble on Tuesday evening; spotted on top of the 125mph Pendolino minutes before it was due to pull out of Euston Station.
Staff put passengers on another service whilst they tried to carefully coax the cat away from its seat near the 25,000 volt power lines.
It took two-and-a-half hours to convince the kitty to clamber down, but eventually it obliged.
A bin was positioned by the carriages which the cat used to disembark before “swaggering off” into the London night.
How the puss got up there in the first place remains a mystery.
Joe Hendry, Network Rail station manager for Euston, said: “We often have to deal with birds inside the station but in all my time here this is the first train surfing cat!
“Thankfully curiosity didn’t kill this cat and we’re glad it avoided using up one of its nine lives thanks to the swift action of the station team and Avanti West Coast staff who organised for passengers to get onto a different train for the rescue to take place.”
Kathryn Pranga-Wells, lead station manager for Avanti West Coast, added: “The things some pets do to avoid lockdown.
“Thankfully we managed to avoid a cat-astrophe but don’t ask me-ow the cat got up there.”