Did you hear the one about the hippo, a Scottish school’s Christmas concert and the big English football club?
No? Well, settle down, while we tell you a story…
It was one of the more idiosyncratic Christmas wishes: nursery children at Bannockburn Primary School, near Stirling, wanted a particular animal for their festive concert. Not a donkey, not a sheep, not a camel - but a real-life hippopotamus.
They searched far and wide for a pachyderm companion to help them perform their chosen Christmas song - I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas, of course - but all their efforts came to nought.
Until, that is, school admin assistant Jenny Milne had a eureka moment: why didn’t the school contact Stoke City FC? Its mascot, Pottermus, is a hippo - taking its punning name from the club’s nickname, The Potters, a reference to the area’s once-thriving pottery trade.
Expectations were low, however, not least because any maps app will tell you that Pottermus would have to haul his hippo frame along a 524-mile round trip from Staffordshire and up across the Scotland-England border.
Yet, much to the school’s surprise, that is exactly what he did - setting off along the M6 yesterday and arriving today, to squeeze in a short-term emergency loan transfer to Bannockburn Primary, before dashing back down for a big match away to Aston Villa in Birmingham tomorrow.
Acting headteacher Aileen Mellor (pictured receiving a Stoke jersey from Pottermus) said: “This whole turn of events has truly been magical and it’s quite hard to believe. The children all said they wanted a real-life hippo to be there for when they sang their song - that’s all they wanted - but it looked like our luck was out.
“When Jenny then sent the message to Stoke, none of us thought for a second we’d even get a reply but to have them send Pottermus all the way up to Stirling to answer the children’s request is just amazing. It’s a true, heart-warming story for Christmas.”
Adrian Hurst, head of community at the EFL Championship club, said: “When we heard that the children of Bannockburn Primary School were on the hunt for a hippo to appear in their Christmas concerts, we knew we could possibly help.
“Pottermus usually takes starring roles at our home games and at events in and around Stoke-on-Trent, but he’s delighted to be heading slightly further afield to help spread some Christmas cheer.”
Susan McGill, Stirling Council’s convener for children and young people, said: “This is a fantastic feel-good story and you could see what it meant to the children to have the hippo there when they sang their song.
“A huge well done to Stoke City for getting into the festive spirit by sending up their mascot and really making it a special Christmas celebration for the children.”
*Photo: Jim Mailer, Whyler Photos
