A YouTuber has shared eery images of what he claims to be a big cat prowling through the English countryside.
Classic car enthusiast and YouTuber Geoff Thompson had a surprising encounter on Sunday, April 14, when he spotted what he believed to be was a "panther-like" big cat prowling through a farmer's field between Great Witley and Martley in Worcestershire. Stopping to snap shots of his vintage Renault 10, his attention was grabbed by the large dark shape moving through the nearby grass.
Geoff told Gloucestershire Live his curiosity lead him to investigate further. He then stumbled upon footprints that cemented his belief of a panther sighting. Speaking of the incident, Geoff shared: "I just went out for a sunny drive. I noticed it as I started photographing my car. I think it was a panther."
He also captured a video of the mysterious creature wandering about in the field. During the short clip, Geoff can be heard questioning aloud, "What the heck is that animal?!" He said: "I saw this mystery animal so I'm going to take a stroll down this field and see how much mud there is at the bottom. The ground is very wet so if there are any prints or anything we'll see them. There's no dog walkers there's no one it's early in the morning no one's around no one at all."
Geoff added: "Big cats have always been a bit of an obsession, fascination of mine since I was a kid so to actually see something odd while out and about is pretty funny in my book.". He reached out to Tim Whittard, a big cat researcher and filmmaker who produced the award-winning documentary 'Panthera Britannia Declassified', which argues that big cats roam the rural wilderness of Britain.
Tim, 38, from Gloucester, shared the video with other experts. He said: "I have had some of my colleagues look over it and while we can't definitively say it was a big cat, the possibility remains on the table.'It absolutely could have been a big cat. Consensus seems to suggest that the majority of the tracks photographed are more likely to be dog than anything else, so whilst the tracks do not yield positive proof, the video of the sighting itself is very organic, very natural and we can't rule out a cat.
This isn't the first time big cats have been spotted in the area, with many people commenting on Geoff's video to share their own experiences. One person said: "I've seen a black cat in that area about 10 to 15 years ago. Another added: "There are big cats out there... Seen one about 20 years ago about 100 yards ahead of me. Lucky for me, I was in my car at the time.
One person also shared: ".One local shared their eerie encounter: "I'm going with panther... A friend tracks them in Wiltshire, I've seen similar photos, telephone poles with scratches on, height indicates big cat." They added: "Personally I saw something panther-like in Wiltshire one night drive. Can't be sure but will never forget the tail." For those intrigued by the possibility of big cats in Britain, the documentary 'Panthera Britannia Declassified' is available on Prime Video and Apple Movies.