Speakers' Lineup -- 2

In our second feature on the speakers who will share their expertise with us at the BCIB conference, we meet three more experienced researchers who seek out mystery cats -- and other even more mysterious creatures.

For more details about the conference, at Tropiquaria in Somerset the weekend of the 7th March, please see the BCIB website.

Rick Minter -- Living With Big Cats in Britain
People's reactions to big cats in Britain range from the disbelieving, to the sceptical, to the open minded. Others are convinced these predators are here, and see it as exciting, some people are concerned, while still others regard it as a quirky issue of no great consequence. Some people worry about what they should do if confronted by a big cat, while others are desperate to get more conclusive photographic evidence. The range of human reactions is quite natural, but perhaps more important is the reaction of actual witnesses.

Richard Freeman -- Big Cats Around the World
Richard is the zoological director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ). After school he became a zookeeper at Twycross Zoo in the West Midlands and became head keeper of reptiles. He worked with over 400 exotic species from ants to elephants but had a special interest in crocodilians. In 1995 he took a degree in zoology at Leeds University.

Richard has undertaken a number of cryptozoological expeditions including:

• Thailand in 2000 to look for a species of giant crested snake known as the naga.
• Sumatra in 2003 to search for the upright walking ape orang-pendek.
• Sumatra in 2004 again to look for the orang-pendek.
• Mongolia in 2005 on the track of the deathworm.
• The Gambia in 2006 to search for a dragon like beast known as ninki-nanka.

In many cases he has been the first westerner to visit certain places such as remote, unexplored caves, valleys and oasis.

Chris Hall -- Teesside

Chris has been looking at the big cat phenomenon since he first encountered reports of the now legendary beast of Exmoor in the daily papers of 1983.

Teesside, located in North East England, is a major industrial area, with massive petrochemical sites, other industries, and many urban centres. So it may seem rather peculiar, if not downright strange that it should have any sightings of large out-of-place cats at all.

The main activity in the area is concentrated on two hotspots: the Castle Eden walkway, and the village of Elswick, near Hartlepool. Other sightings form a rough triangle around this part of southeast Durham, and North Cleveland.

The nearby villages of Sedgefield, Trimdon, Ferryhill, Wingate, Wynyard, Stillington and Billingham have all reported sightings over the last twenty years or so.