A FAMOUS ginger cat has been barred from a south Cumbria pub.

Dora, who lives in Rydal Mount in Ambleside, has been banned from the Badger Bar at Rydal after causing some trouble.

Paul Knowles, the owner of Badger Bar, said he was so purr-plexed by Dora's antics he put up a picture of the cat on the notice board outside the bar saying: 'Barred! Please do not let the cat in. It does not live here!'

"It used to prowl around the beer garden and look for attention and then it found its way into the building and it started jumping on tables getting food," said Mr Knowles.

"It got a bit cheeky so people would let it in because they thought it was a pub cat, but it is not, so we decided it would be fun to put up a little notice - it is a bit funny, isn't it?"

Helen Green, the head gardener of Rydal Mount, said she was quite shocked by the notice.

"I have never seen anything like that. I thought cats were allowed to wander anywhere," she said. 

"Dora has obviously made herself quite comfortable and walked into the bar, which is quite a busy bar, and they allow dogs.

"Part of the Badger Bar is a hotel and she is obviously in the hotel and perhaps into the bedrooms and made herself comfortable - that is probably the reason why she has been barred."

The cat, named after William Wordsworth's daughter Dora Wordsworth, walked into Rydal Mount 11 years ago and she has been with them ever since.

"People actually come to the gardens to see Dora - she is quite a celebrity because she is always around Rydal Mount and she is always being photographed," said Helen.