Last updated at 14:27, Thursday, 09 August 2012

Is there some crazed wild beast stalking the wilderness of Cumbria?

A big cat, a fierce feline fiend, a sabre-toothed moggie. Or do we just get a bit excited when we glimpse something we don’t quite recognise or can’t quite explain? A national Big Cat Watch will take place later this month when people across the country will scour the fields, woods and hedgerows of the nation to spot any mysterious wild creatures.

There have certainly been plenty of big cat sightings in Cumbria over the years. Just last weekend, Raymond Sant and his wife Vera were driving from their home in Thursby towards Asda, Carlisle.

As they drove close to a wooded area beside the supermarket, Mr Sant caught a glimpse of a mysterious large black cat.

He says it was the size of labrador, but with a longer tail. He says it definitely wasn’t a labrador.

It probably was a labrador. But Mr Sant doesn’t really want to believe it – and nor do we. Do we?

At the end of the day, does it really matter? Will it make any difference if we find out that it was a labrador or a huge, over-sized tabby that had overdosed on discarded takeaways or if we discover an escaped black panther?

The fact is we all love mysteries, magic and things that can’t be explained.

That’s why we love murder whodunnits, we love the escapism of Harry Potter, Mulder and Scully and why magicians are so popular.

It is why people still believe in the Loch Ness Monster, alien abduction and the abomni- abomana- abnorm - the yeti.

I hope hundreds take part in the big cat hunt, I hope there are hundreds of sightings and the mystery of whether there is something out there continues.

At a time when we’re all on reality TV shows, when technology is galloping forward making everything faster, smaller, more available and disposable it’s good to have an old-fashioned bit of suspense and intrigue.

I hope no one looks too closely.

First published at 11:30, Thursday, 09 August 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk