Sidmouth residents offered chance to throttle own turkeys at possible hoax event

People in Sidmouth are being offered the chance to throttle their own turkey this Christmas, in what is believed to be a hoax or a publicity stunt.

The dubious Christmas event supposedly taking place in East Devon has caused controversy this week after claiming to offer customers the chance to throttle their own turkeys, for an extra £3.

Nub News has been investigating the event and the organisers after many people have asked if the event is some kind of joke or publicity stunt. Is this a hoax? Who is behind it?

Freshest Christmas Turkeys In Devon, which has a Facebook page and claims to be a food wholesaler, has announced it will be selling turkeys in Ottery St Mary just a few days before Christmas.

Here is the description of the event posted on the business' Facebook page: "We will be supplying East Devon with the Freshest Turkeys possible this Christmas by allowing our customers to hand pick their favourite bird from a choice of thousands that we'll have individually caged in our lorries.

"Once selected, the customer can choose to throttle the bird themselves or have one of our staff do it for them whilst they watch.

"The bird will then be plucked, gutted and bagged up whilst still warm. You wont find a fresher Christmas Turkey in Devon! Probably the Country!!

"Price is dependant on the weight of the Turkey and it's an extra £3 to throttle the bird yourself."

The event page and business page have received dozens of comments asking if the offer is a joke and whether or not the event is a publicity stunt.

Here are a couple of responses from the page's administrators: "Please scroll past if this event isn't for you, we understand that not everybody is a meat eater nowadays but we are supplying those that are with the freshest meat possible."

"So far all I've received is negative comments from women but this event realistically isn't for you, traditionally it's popular with middle aged men who want to have the feeling of being a kind of hunter gatherer.

"So I suggest you all either stop commenting or tag any men you know as I'm sure they will tell you that this is a great event. So many have already attended our previous events in Devon in 2016."

The event has certainly stirred up strong emotions as this comment from Paula Branco demonstrates: "You should be ashamed of yourselves for promoting this cruelty! Totally disgusting."

According to the Facebook event page the event will be held at White Cross car park on East Hill strips, Ottery St Mary on December 23 and 24 and more venues should be announced shortly.

It is still unclear if the event is real or a publicity stunt. Nub News has contacted the organisers to find out more.

Check out the event page by clicking the red button below and decide for yourself.