MOOS Flash?

Moos-flash: 'There's a polar bear on the beach!' Newsreader mistakes dead cow washed up in Cornwall for Arctic beast

By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 11:19 AM on 21st September 2010

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When TV newsreader Naomi Lloyd told hundreds of thousands of viewers that a polar bear had been found washed up on a Cornish beach, spectators were amazed that something so extraordinary could happen in a sleepy town like Bude.

However she was left red-faced when it was revealed that the ‘polar bear’ was actually a cow whose skin had been bleached white by the sea water.

News of the stranded beast was broadcast to viewers in Devon and Cornwall on ITV's West Country bulletin at 7.55am yesterday.

Mistaken identity: The dead cow, whose skin had been bleached white by the sea water, was found washed up on a beach in Bude, Cornwall

It appeared alongside video footage shot by a viewer from a cliff top of a large white animal lying on the shore.

‘A walker in Cornwall has caught an extraordinary sight on camera,’ Lloyd announced.

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‘A polar bear has washed up on a beach near Bude. The bear comes from the Arctic Circle and an investigation is under way as to how it could have ended up there.’

But officials who went to investigate discovered the animal was in fact a cow.

Several dog walkers and ramblers in the resort had woken up to see the large white animal slumped on the shore.

Red-faced: Newsreader Naomi Lloyd made the embarrassing error during ITV's West Country bulletin which is regularly broadcast to up to 2 million viewers

They feared it was a polar bear washed several thousand miles from the North Pole and immediately rang the local TV station.

A spokesman for ITV West Country, which regularly broadcasts to up to two million viewers, said they had dropped the article after its morning bulletin when they discovered the animal was a cow.

He said: ‘It was a bit embarrassing. When we realised what it was we pulled the slot straight away.’

Several local people who took photos and video of the animal rang the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) service.

A spokesman said: ‘The animal caused quiet a stir in Bude. Several people had seen the animal from a cliff top and thought it was a polar bear.

‘It's size and colour and its lying position on the beach did make it look like a polar bear and we had several calls.

‘But on closer inspection we discovered it was a cow. The tides was very strong and it did bring several dead animals in along that stretch of coast.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1313846/Newsreader-red-faced-telling-2m-viewers-dead-cow-polar-bear.html#ixzz10AAOqCkK