Smiley seal spotted in Ely becomes social media hit

Sophie Bell said if she had not glanced over at the seal, she "would've thought he was a sandbag"

A "happy little seal" that has been basking in the sun on the banks of an inland river has become a hit on social media.

Photos of the seal in Ely, nicknamed Neil, were posted after local rumours about it started to circulate.

Sophie Bell, who snapped the pictures, said seals are "not common" in the area but gave the visit a seal of approval.

"We all were quite envious of him really just having a good time in the sun," she said.

Ms Bell and her family hired a boat on 29 May to go along the River Cam to Cambridge.

She said the boatyard team told them there was an "elusive seal" that had been seen in the area, more than 30 miles (48km) from the nearest coast.

Rumours had been circulating in Ely about the seal being in the local area

As the family returned down the narrow old west river "really slowly" the seal was spotted, the 42-year-old told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

Her husband saw it first and turned the boat around so they could get a better look.

"It's a good job we did because I would've thought he was an old sandbag had we been going too fast," she said.

Ms Bell said her children were "thrilled" to see the seal

A Facebook post about the seal has attracted more than 100 comments and shares

The "happy little chap" looked like he was "living his best life", she said.

The photos of the smiley seal were posted to Spotted in Ely on Facebook, where it has received more than 1,400 likes and loves responses.

"I thought Spotted in Ely might really like to see this because there's always been rumours that seals come by this way but [we've] not had many people report seeing one, so we thought we'd share, and it's had quite a reaction, so that's lovely," Ms Bell said.