Doc Martin star Martin Clunes has written a letter to the police on behalf of PETA, urging the Met to 'take every measure necessary' to find the 'Cat Ripper of Croydon', who is thought to have decapitated and dismembered up to 35 cats in the area.

Clunes, who owns cats himself, described the situation as 'the stuff of nightmares' and added 'The local community is understandably distraught and frightened. No one feels safe while this sick individual is on the loose', pointing out that animal abuse is considered to be a 'red flag' of deeper mental disturbances to mental health professionals. PETA has offered a £5k reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator.