The satirical website The Suffolk Gazette published an article titled "Seagull rips off man's testicle as he sunbathes naked". It opened:
A rogue seagull ripped off a man's right testicle as he sunbathed naked in his back garden, it has emerged.
Experts say the fearsome bird mistook the man's exposed privates as a couple of birds eggs and dropped in for a tasty snack.
As the man - who has not been named - dozed on his patio in his detached home near Ipswich, the seagull swooped from the sky, and with one bite of its beak ripped away the right testicle.
The tale is reminiscent of another fake story that was trending a few months ago about an eagle that ripped away a man's crown jewels.
The Suffolk Gazette is a satirical website subtitled "You couldn't make it up" and with following explanation on its about page:
You couldn't make it up. Suffolk is full of strange and wonderful stories, and our tales explode across social media and get repeated by gullible mainstream media, including Sky News and national newspapers.
Meanwhile internet seagulls have picked up the story as the Trendolizer graph at the end of this article shows. If you see one flying by on your timeline with this load of bollocks, send them here to learn something about fake news and satire.
