Seagull Boy at Fortnum's
Seagull Boy Flies to Fortnum's
IS IT A BIRD? IS IT A PLANE? NOT QUITE. MEET SEAGULL BOY!
You’ve heard of Batman. You’ve heard of Spider-Man. You may have even heard of Ant-Man. But now, there’s a new superhero on the block. By day, he’s known as Cooper Wallace, nine years of age and hailing from Chesterfield - but once he dons his costume, he transforms into Seagull Boy, capable of perfectly imitating the sound of a seagull’s screech.
Cooper, not dissimilar to Peter Parker’s own encounter with a radioactive spider, first discovered his powers three years ago when he was holidaying in Devon and he was bitten by a particularly ravenous seagull, who Cooper has now named Jerry. To add insult to injury, it even stole his ham sandwich. Fortunately his sister was nearby, armed with a spade she had been using to build a sandcastle, to fight Jerry off.
After this scuffle (and theft), Cooper started to take an interest in seagulls, and soon came to realise that the seagull’s bite may have given him the extraordinary ability to mimic their call. And it turned out he wasn’t alone, because he discovered there was a European Championship Gull Screeching competition. Taking place in Belgium, Cooper was crowned the European Championship Gull Screeching Gold 2024 Juvenile Medal, and has since become the squawk of the town.
Having been wowed by Cooper’s amazing gift, Fortnum’s invited him to visit us in store, where we showed him our own flock of flying origami seagulls circling the atrium.
“How does it feel to come and see the seagulls in Fortnum & Mason?” we asked him. “It feels amazing,” says Cooper, dressed head to (webbed) toe in his super seagull garb. “They're so intricate and detailed and super posh. I like everything about them!” Cooper has been invited to Fortnum’s because his winning seagull screech will be the soundtrack of our display. “It’s amazing,” says Cooper about providing the sound for our seagulls. “I will be able to hear myself in a very famous shop in London.” He was also particularly excited for a new ice cream coming to our award-winning Parlour on the 2nd Floor here at Piccadilly. “You have a new flavoured ice cream called Fortnum’s Rock, and it comes with a stick of Blackpool rock in it. I can't wait to try it next time I come in!”
In case there are any aspiring seagull impersonators amongst you, we asked Cooper how he achieves the perfect screech. “Drink a lot of water or nice, smooth drinks,” he advises. “If you have a dry throat or a cough it probably won't work as well.” An excellent tip, perhaps made even better with a refreshing Fortnum’s brew.
We wanted to know how the Sensational Seagull Boy plans to spend his summer. “I'm most looking forward to going back to the beach. Just doing my noise in general and being around other seagulls.”
“I have a few seagull friends,” Cooper reveals. He even has a seagull mascot, who he credits for helping him secure his win. “This is Steven. Steven Seagull.”
Finally, we asked Cooper if he was entering any other similar competitions. “I can do a peacock noise, but I'm not sure if there's a competition for that.” Cooper’s award-winning seagull cry can now be heard in our Piccadilly home until the end of August. So be sure to visit us for this slice of the seaside in store, and try our new Seagull Boy-approved Eau de Nil ice cream at The Parlour.