Countdown host Nick Hewer mourns death of 'my lovely barn owl' after bird flies through his bathroom window and crashes into mirror

TV presenter storing body in his freezer while he considers taxidermy

Hewer holding the deceased creature (Twitter/Nick Hewer)

Countdown host Nick Hewer has mourned the death of a barn owl that flew through his bathroom window before crashing into a mirror.

The former adviser to Lord Sugar on The Apprentice announced the death to his fans on Twitter, describing the bird's passing as "sad".

Mr Hewer added that he was considering whether to have the owl stuffed and put on display.

Nick Hewer (Getty)

"RIP my lovely barn owl," he wrote above a picture of the barn owl clasped in his hand. "Sad," he concluded.

The news from Hewer, whose memoir is being published next month, was met with bewilderment from many social media users.

"I don't think I've ever seen a more bizarre tweet (but RIP Owl)", said one.

Another asked whether Hewer had checked if the owl was dead before he put it in the freezer.

The former public relations consultant replied with a reference to the famous Monty Python sketch: "Just as dead as Cleese's parrot, I'm afraid."

Some Twitter users attempted to pay their respects with a series of puns, while others replied with insults.

One named "Geordie Alex" corrected his spelling of "threw" to "through" and suggested he ask Susie Dent, the star of Countdown's "Dictionary Corner".

"Genuinely confused as to whether Nick Hewer putting a dead barn owl in his freezer is the tweet of 2018 we all needed or not," said Matthew Eyre.