A restaurant owner phoned a council helpline to ask whether it is legal to shoot seagulls in the street to serve to customers.
The phone call has been included in a list of the strangest calls received by Westminster Council which receives 1.4 million calls a year.
Other bizarre requests include a man who asked the council to travel to Dubai to collect his lost wheelchair, a person who wanted the telephone number for the speaking clock and a husband-to-be who asked what the “s” stands for in “Mrs”.
One woman, who phoned the council last week, asked to have all porn removed from the internet. She was advised that the whole of the web was not under the jurisdiction of the council and told her MP was a better person to speak to.
Another woman requested to make a complaint to trading standards because she suspected the “designer” handbag she had bought for £10 from a market stall was fake.
One woman phoned to complain about a “public toilet” where the door had opened. She said that after sitting down, her shopping started spinning on the floor in front of her and the seat started spinning. When the door opened she claimed she was greeted by shocked shoppers on the street.
Another female caller phoned the council to ask her own age, while another called to ask for directions to a foot clinic that she did not know the name or address of.
One man phoned to ask where he could buy apples after his local Morrisons store ran out.
Westminster said it is encouraging residents to look online for answers in a bid to reduce the number of calls it gets each year.
Margaret Scott, team leader at Westminster Council’s call centre said: “Some things are just beyond belief. We are here to help, but sometimes there is no help to be given. We take about 1.4 million calls per year and we do get some very interesting ones.”
