Up Next

A cat has become a viral sensation after disappearing beneath a clergyman’s robes during a video sermon.

Dean of Canterbury, Robert Willis, was mid-sentence when brazen feline Leo strutted onto camera.

A video shows the cat grab attention by walking across the shot and heading straight for the Anglican priest.

Before Revd Willis knew it, Leo had completely vanished into his garment.

Amazingly, the dean somehow managed to keep a straight face during the incident, which has been a hit on social media.

Since being posted to the Canterbury Cathedral Twitter page on May 23, it has received more than 1,100 retweets and 3,800 ‘likes’.

One person on Twitter joked ‘legend says he never escaped’, while another quipped ‘now that’s a Canterbury tail!’.

The Canterbury Cathedral team wrote: ‘Leo the cat has been getting up to mischief again! Did you spot this moment in Morning Prayer last week? #Caturday’.

Undated handout photo issued by Canterbury Cathedral of the Dean of Canterbury recording a sermon, which was interrupted by the cathedral cat wandering into view and disappearing beneath the Dean's robes. PA Photo. Issue date: Tuesday May 26, 2020. Somehow keeping a straight face, The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis managed to avoid a feline fiasco and continued with his sermon on Wednesday last week, but the footage has proved a hit online, racking up almost 100,000 views on Twitter and Facebook after it was uploaded over the weekend See PA story RELIGION Cat. Photo credit should read: Canterbury Cathedral/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
Leo the cat became a viral hit last week (Picture: PA)
Undated handout photo issued by Canterbury Cathedral of the Dean of Canterbury recording a sermon, which was interrupted by the cathedral cat wandering into view and disappearing beneath the Dean's robes. PA Photo. Issue date: Tuesday May 26, 2020. Somehow keeping a straight face, The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis managed to avoid a feline fiasco and continued with his sermon on Wednesday last week, but the footage has proved a hit online, racking up almost 100,000 views on Twitter and Facebook after it was uploaded over the weekend See PA story RELIGION Cat. Photo credit should read: Canterbury Cathedral/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
The cheeky clip got more than 1,100 retweets and 3,800 ‘likes’ (Picture: PA)

Staff at the cathedral have also assured fans that while Leo is ‘undoubtedly the comedian’ of the  Deanery’s four cats, he takes his duties as ambassador ‘very seriously’.

They said: ‘He has been enjoying making our daily broadcasts since March and, whilst he would be happy to be in every one, we have tried to include the others to prevent them getting jealous.

‘With over 20,000 visitors to the Deanery and its gardens each year – and over 1.5 million to the cathedral – he is used to being on show and, having been born in the Deanery and growing up here, he is very used to company and is a very friendly and happy little cat (if not the brightest of the four).

‘He loves to socialise with the cathedral’s many pilgrims and visitors and takes his role as ambassador very seriously.

‘In calmer times he finds a cosy place in the house or sunny spot in the gardens to sleep.’

The Dean’s daily prayers regularly hits 2,000 views each, while the cathedral’s Easter Day Eucharist – which featured recordings by the Prince of Wales and the Archbishop of Canterbury – was viewed more than 11,000 times.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.