TV designer BANJO Beale reveals how he saved his pet pooch Grandpa from becoming pig fodder.
The telly host and his hubby Rohan rescued the wolfhound/greyhound cross when they returned to Banjo’s home town in 2021.
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Grandpa has since become a firm favourite with viewers on the BBC Scotland series Designing the Hebrides and even has his own Instagram account.
Banjo, 38, explained: “We found Grandpa as a little puppy as hunters were using him as bait.
“They go hunting for wild boar and will put the puppies out into the bush to lure them out – it’s horrible.
“But this old couple rescued Grandpa and his brother and as soon as we saw him we fell in love and knew we needed to find a way to bring him back to Mull with us.”
And their love extended to a £5,000 flight as Grandpa made the 10,000 mile journey to Scotland in style.
Banjo says: “He had to fly back via Dubai where he spent two nights in a pet hotel.
“There were all these optional extras and somehow we ticked all the boxes so he got a TV and his own suite along with a SPA.
“His daily dog walks on the beach were like another 150 quid alone.
“I tell you he had a better flight and accommodation than we had as we flew back home in cattle class.”
Viewers will also see Banjo’s pet duck Ferdinand in the new series – named after the same bird in the 1995 kids classic Babe.
He added: “All I ever wanted to be was like the farmer’s wife in Babe – surrounded by a menagerie of animals.”
*Designing The Hebrides is on BBC Scotland from Monday (Sep 16) at 7pm and on BBC Two from Tuesday (Sep17). All six episodes available on BBC iPlayer from Monday.
