Tue. Sep 9th, 2025


Sarah TurnnidgeBBC News Bristol

Cooper scored 92 points out of a possible 100

An 11-year-old who went viral for his seagull-mimicking skills is set to judge a local screeching competition.

Cooper, from Chesterfield in Derbyshire, will be the guest of honour at the first ever Weston-super-Mare Seagull Screeching Championship on Sunday.

‘Seagull Boy’ became an overnight sensation aged just nine after winning a European championship in 2024, and went on to defend his title in April.

Now he will bring his talents to the North Somerset town to judge two competitions – one for under-12s and another for teenagers and adults.

Family photo Cooper, who has short dark blond hair and wears a white T-shirt and part of a gull costume, smiles as he looks at one of two identical medals. The medals have a picture of a seagull on them, surrounded by gold stars on a blue background, and blue ribbons with the EU logo on them. Family photo

Eleven-year-old Cooper went viral in 2024 for his uncanny impression of a seagull

David Peters, tourism marketing officer for Weston-super-Mare, told the BBC: “We saw Cooper on television and on the internet – he was all over the place.

“Basically, as soon as we saw him, we just thought that we had to get him down to Weston-super-Mare.

“It is just such a fun event and he is so good at what he does that we just thought ‘this is so Weston’.”

Since first going viral in 2024, Cooper has been interviewed by TV and radio stations around the world, was followed by a Korean film crew for three days as part of a documentary about seagulls and even won €1,000 (£867) on a German game show.

Weston-super-Mare’s version of the event will take place at the Stacks Lounge, inside the Sovereign Shopping Centre, from midday on Sunday.

Entrants have been asked to sign up via email, but a limited number of places will also be available on the day from 10:30 to 11:30 BST.

Visit Weston-super-Mare Mascot Sammy the Seagull, who wears a white and black striped Weston-super-Mare AFC shirt, poses with a large sign for "traditional fish and chips". Visit Weston-super-Mare

Weston-super-Mare AFC mascot Sammy the Seagull hit the town on Thursday to promote the competition

“We’ve got two categories, so there’s no excuses for not taking part really,” said Mr Peters.

“[In] the over 12s we’re also including parents, grandparents – anybody who can make a seagull call, we want to hear from them.”



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