A troublesome black swan nicknamed Reggie has been exiled from Stratford-upon-Avon—the birthplace of William Shakespeare—after months of terrorizing both visitors and fellow birds along the River Avon.
Locals say Reggie, known for his aggressive behavior, had spent the past nine months chasing mute swans and disrupting the normally peaceful waterside. Stratford’s swan warden, Cyril Bennis, said the capture was necessary, describing the bird as “Mr. Terminator” with “far too much attitude.”
“Other swans actually seemed to bow as Reggie passed by,” Bennis told The Telegraph. “It was extraordinary.”
After a difficult capture that left Bennis “walloped left, right and center,” Reggie was transported more than 150 miles away to the Dawlish Waterfowl Centre in Devon.
The banishment is a dramatic chapter in Stratford’s long history with swans, which have been tied to the town’s identity since Shakespeare’s time. The playwright himself once wrote the tribute, “Sweet Swan of Avon.”
But residents agree: Reggie was anything but sweet. In recent weeks he reportedly tried to court a white swan, a match Bennis firmly opposed. “That’s not going to happen on my watch,” he told the Stratford-upon-Avon Herald.
For now, Stratford’s riverside swans—and its tourists—may finally enjoy a little peace, free from the reign of their feathered bully.