MEET Simba.

Simba is not just an inquisitive little cat -- he's a very lucky one too!

His story of espionage and escape began when he took his daily constitution around the roads of his Radcliffe home.

Nothing new in that of course. Only this time Simba didn't come back ... for five days and six nights!

His owner, Sue Fearn had gone on holiday, leaving Simba in the capable hands of her 18-year-old son, Mark.

Mark says: "When Simba didn't come back after the first night I started to worry. By the second I was in a total panic. But that was nothing like the flap my mum was in when she got back!" Which was understandable because, by now, Simba had been missing for almost a week.

Sue immediately started searching the area but, to no avail.

"Just before it went dark," says Mark, "mum decided to go out one last time. As she got close to a neighbour's garage she heard a very faint miaowing.

"She called out Simba's name and the miaowing got louder."

Sue knocked on the door of the house but there was no answer. She hung around for ages, but still nobody appeared. Reluctantly she went home and returned first thing in the morning.

Mark says: "But a lady told my mum that the householder was away in France for another week, and he had the garage key with him!"

After talking to the chap, he agreed to let Sue's husband, Andy break into the garage and rescue a, by now, terrified, cold and very hungry Simba.

"When we got in to the garage we saw him cowering right up in the eaves," says Mark. "But mum managed to coax him down and he was shaking like a leaf.

"She took him home and gave him a massive bowl of tuna."

Needless to say, Simba has been grounded for the next few weeks!