London cabbie drives to Madrid and back to pick up a labrador

A London cabbie has completed one of the oddest fares of his career - picking up a dog from Madrid. John Jupp was called by the labrador's owner and asked to deliver him to a Knightsbridge address.

The owner, who does not want to be named, said she was willing to pay the fare for a round trip to Madrid in order to have her dog with her. "She asked if I take dogs in my taxi," said Mr Jupp. "As she had previously been a good customer, I said yes. She then asked me to give her a price to pick the dog up and bring it to her house in Knightsbridge, so I asked her for the address. Her reply was truly a moment I will not forget - Madrid."



Mr Judd, who won't reveal what the fare came to, travelled to Santander by ferry, before a four-hour drive to Madrid to pick up the dog and its "helper". "Wednesday saw the 4am start to a 16-hour drive to Calais with the dog and its Spanish minder on board," said Mr Judd. However, the trip hit a snag when the cab arrived in Calais.

Mr Judd said: "We were greeted by a very nice chap who explained that the dog's vet certificate had expired by six hours, resulting in it not being allowed to travel. Worse still, even if we saw a vet at 9pm we would have to wait 24 hours. I can report that French vets are as mercenary as British ones and we parted with £100 for six minutes - good work if you can get it." After a night in Calais the trip resumed and the dog was reunited with its owner in Knightsbridge after midnight.