Dorset pub launches urgent appeal for beloved badger after drunken thief accused of nicking local icon

Susanna Siddell
Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:32:39 +0000

A Dorset pub has issued an urgent plea on GB News after a drunken thief nicked a locally loved stuffed toy from the British boozer.

Last Friday, Mr Badger, who is usually seen with Mrs Badger, was believed to have been taken by a customer of the Oddfellows who had been spied holding the toy.

Landlord Callum Brooks has since offered up an award in exchange for any information about the badger's whereabouts, noting his absence "has left Mrs Badger staring out of the pub's window longing for her partner's return".

The "light-fingered drinker", as described by GB News host Martin Daubney, was caught on CCTV, allowing the pub owner to create some wanted posters.

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Locals are looking to locate Mr Badger - which remains at large - by April 11 when a street party is set to take place in the village.

The toy has become "part of the furniture", having sat in the window of the boozer for the past 35 years, and is now greatly missed by the watering hole.

Joining GB News this afternoon, Mr Brooks recounted the story so far - and said it was "surprising" the culprit was yet to be identified.

"We've not had any leads yet," he told the People's Channel. "We started it as a little bit of lighthearted fun on Saturday morning.

"Obviously, we noticed our badger was missing, and we didn't want to blow it out of proportion.

"We know we understand the situation, but it's part of the pub's history, and it means a lot to our locals."

He continued: "Wimborne is such a tight knit community that it's surprising that no one knows or has identified the lady from the CCTV.

"So at the moment we think it might have been an outsider, but that's only speculation.

"I think what's important is the whole point of what we're trying to do is really it's just to get the badger back where it belongs.

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"We don't want any kind of stress or the extra duress onto any individuals. We just want a positive outcome to a really quirky story.

"And it's probably a little bit of humour and light in times which you're not always seen as at the moment."

But Mr Brooks has promised "no monkey business about the badger" - with no charges whatsoever for the guilty culprit.

"The lady is more than welcome to drop it anonymously into any area, any place establishment in Wimborne," he assured.

"If she comes in here, she'd be made to feel most welcome. She can have a drink.

"It's just about - if we don't pull up this kind of behaviour, then how's it going to look? Where do we draw the line? Do we go into people's houses and take stuff?"

Mr Brooks confirmed a woman had been spotted grasping the toy, with several of her friends by her side - near the infamous windowsill where Mr Badger once resided.

Previously, he said: "We are aware that it is a stuffed toy and there are far more serious things going on in the world but you should not be tampering with history."