Alton Towers fools the nation in sheep prank

Alton Towers has owned up to the mysterious branding of sheep which have cropped up around the UK.

The mysterious discovery left local residents confused in South Wales, Perthshire, North Yorkshire, Exeter, Middlesborough and Melton Mowbray prompting several news stories across the press. A headline in the Daily Mail read "Just grin and baaa it!" and the Sun ran with "Farmers baaaaafled after hundreds of sheep are branded with smiley face."

After much debate on twitter and internet forums, Alton Towers revealed it was all part of an elaborate prank. Katherine Duckworth from the resort said: "We wanted to create some mystery around the name of our new world first rollercoaster, The Smiler.

"We've managed to baffle the nation and hopefully made a few people smile. The Smiler will be our biggest and most thrilling attraction the Resort has ever seen and we can't wait for guests to join us in May and experience it for themselves."

Ros Turner, a farmer from Melton Mowbray said: "Everyone loves a mystery and it was great to be involved in the hoax. It made a nice change from milking cows and ploughing fields!"

The Smiler will launch later this year and is the biggest investment the resort has ever made for a ride, costing a massive £18 million. The coaster will boast a highest drop of 30m and reach speeds of up to 85km/h, which is 10km/h faster than Air.