Pickle the suburban pig brings trains to a standstill

IT WAS a scene that could have been written for The Good Life, as emergency engineers trying to fix a burst water main were frustrated by the eccentricities of south London suburbia.

Efforts to repair the broken pipe, which brought chaos to roads and rail lines in Surbiton – the location of the much-loved BBC sitcom – were thwarted by an unlikely culprit.

A large pig, believed to be a pet named Pickle, blocked the path of a Thames Water emergency repair team when they tried to reach the pipe in a field next to residential houses.

It meant engineers were not able to start work on the leak because of fears that the “startled” animal would not take kindly to their approach.

The situation could hardly have been more urgent. Water was blocking one of the busiest rail routes in the country to London Waterloo, affecting thousands of commuters, and flooding surrounding roads. Southern Western

Pickle was described by a spokesman for Thames Water as a ‘big boy’, weighing around 290lb

Railway services were either cancelled or delayed on the line between Surbiton and Wimbledon.

Something had to be done to ensure the pig at the heart of the drama could be kept at a safe distance. The answer came in the form of a packet of crisps.

According to Thames Water, one ingenious customer lured Pickle away from the pipe using crisps as bait, allowing work to finally get under way.

Pickle was described by a spokesman for the company as a “big boy”, weighing around 290lb, and that – contrary to initial reports – did not “approach anyone aggressively”.

The farcical incident had echoes of an early episode of The Good Life – the Seventies series that followed the adventures of a couple leading a selfsufficient life – featuring two troublesome pigs called Pinky and Perky.

Both South Western Railway and Thames Water were forced to apologise for the disruption to commuters.

A video shared by the rail operator showed torrents of water cascading onto the rail track from the road above. Work on the burst pipe continued throughout the day and the railway reopened shortly after 4pm.

A Network Rail spokesman said: “We are sorry to passengers for today’s disruption into London Waterloo which was caused by a burst water main in Surbiton.”