It’s one of the most attractive villages in Britain which styles itself ‘the Venice of the Cotswolds’ but today the town of Bourton-on-the-Water is united – after a pair of much-loved geese who had made their home there were run over and killed.
The birds – called George and Mildred or Harry and Hermione depending on the age of the resident – were so popular in the town that it was not uncommon for locals to take a detour in order to catch a glimpse of them on the stretch of riverbank that had become their home.
But on Wednesday at around 5:30pm, their lives were cut short by a van driver who hit them as they attempted to cross a busy road in order to enjoy what had become their customary evening nibble of grass on the opposite side.
So upset are locals that plans are even being discussed to build a permanent memorial to the two wild geese on the riverbank where they had made their home.
And many have laid flowers at the scene of the collision.
Summing up the sense of sadness was a post on the town’s Facebook page which read: ‘RIP you absolutely beautiful pair. .always remembered’
Trevor Clements, 73, whose home overlooked the patch of grass where the geese hung out every evening told of the chaos that greeted him when he arrived home on Wednesday evening.
Mr Clements, a retired Royal Mail sorting office worker, said: ‘There were feathers everywhere. The police were here and cars were backing up from the spot where the poor birds had been hit.
The birds – called George and Mildred or Harry and Hermione depending on the age of the resident – were very popular in the town of Bourton-on-the-Water in the Cotswolds
On Wednesday at around 5:30pm the birds’ lives were cut short by a van driver who hit them as they attempted to cross a busy road
Bourton-on-the-Water is one of the most attractive villages in Britain which styles itself ‘the Venice of the Cotswolds’
‘The guy who hit them in his van was being given a good talking-to the officers, but they had to let him go because hitting a wild creature is not an offence, apparently.
‘The geese must have been trying to cross the road, as they did every evening at that time, when the van struck them. You can still see the remnants of blood and feathers in the road where it happened.
‘I feel so sad that they have gone. They turned up around 18 months ago and had stayed at the same spot on the river ever since.
‘They became part of the fixtures and fittings of the town. Everybody loved them.
‘But you’d have been a fool to try and get too close to them because the male was extremely protective of the female and if you walked over to them, he’d start hissing and chasing after you with his outstretched neck.
‘Every evening, they’d waddle over the road and just sit on the grass here nibbling away for an hour or two, then trudge back across the road to the riverbank.
‘To be honest, I’m amazed they haven’t been run over before because this is a busy road and although it is a 20mph speed limit, few motorists comply.
‘I’ve seen cars and vans whizzing along this road at speeds of up to 50mph regularly. They treat this stretch of road like they’re at Brands Hatch.
Trevor Clements, 73, whose home overlooked the patch of grass where the geese hung out every evening told of the chaos that greeted him when he arrived home on Wednesday evening
‘You can still see the remnants of blood and feathers in the road where it happened,’ Mr Clements said
Many locals have laid flowers at the scene of the collision in respect to the birds
James Walker, 40, said that when he picked his daughter up from school, she always made him drive to the other end of town in order to see the geese
‘It won’t be the same without our beloved George and Mildred sitting on the bank opposite and paddling in the little river there. We are all absolutely gutted that they’re gone.’
One local even took it upon himself to find a pet crematorium in order to give them a proper send-off. It is understood the birds’ ashes will be incorporated at the prospective memorial site.
Another local, James Walker, 40, said that when he picked his daughter up from school, she always made him drive to the other end of town in order to see the geese.
‘She’s a massive Harry Potter fan and she christened them Harry and Hermione,’ said Mr Walker, who runs The Den café in the busy town.
‘I had to break the news to her that they had died and she was distraught.
‘She looked forward to seeing them after school every afternoon and often walked through the town to see them during the holidays and weekends.
‘She adored them.’
Geese George and Mildred were named after the 1976 sitcom featuring a married couple adapting to life in an up-market housing estate
‘To be honest, I’m amazed they haven’t been run over before because this is a busy road and although it is a 20mph speed limit, few motorists comply,’ one local said
Retired midwife Jan Thomson, 86, described the geese as ‘part and parcel’ of life in the bustling town
‘One thing for sure – life is not going to be the same around here without our beloved George and Mildred,’ said Ms Thomson
Retired midwife Jan Thomson, 86, described the geese as ‘part and parcel’ of life in the bustling town.
She said ‘They’ve been our neighbours for 18 months and I can’t believe they’re gone.
‘I loved watching them on the riverbank every day. They seemed so happy and loyal to one another. They were inseparable.
‘It is tremendously sad that they have been killed, especially like this. The only saving grace is that they died together so neither will have to spend the rest of their lives missing the other one.
‘It also occurs to me that it could have been a three-year-old child who was hit. Why don’t people concentrate when they’re driving?’
‘One thing for sure – life is not going to be the same around here without our beloved George and Mildred.’
