'Parkour runner' rescued from Houghton House ruin

Houghton House is the shell of a 17th-century mansion in Ampthill

A parkour runner had to be rescued from the ruins of 17th Century mansion, prompting warnings from firefighters about "dangerous hobbies".

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service said a nine metre ladder was used to help the woman down from Houghton House in Ampthill on Sunday evening.

A tweet said: "The member of the public was believed to have been taking part in parkour and got themselves stuck."

It asked people to consider the "knock on effect on emergency services".

Parkour can be practiced anywhere but most people train outdoors, typically in urban spaces

Sometimes known as freerunning, parkour is a non-competitive discipline that involves moving from one point to another across any terrain, and overcoming obstacles using only your physical capabilities such as running, jumping or climbing.

Crews from Bedford, Ampthill and Dunstable rescued the woman after receiving a call at about 19:00 BST and the service had to "mobilise standby appliances to maintain fire cover".

A spokeswoman said the runner was rescued from the second floor of the English Heritage site and crews used two rescue pumps, a technical rescue unit an aerial platform to "assist her to the ground".

Houghton House is the shell of a 17th-century mansion and is thought to have been the inspiration for the "House Beautiful" in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.