Europe’s best seagull impersonator has been crowned – a 10-year-old boy from Derbyshire

{“@context”:”https://schema.org”,”@type”:”VideoObject”,”name”:”Metro.co.uk”,”duration”:”T3M28S”,”thumbnailUrl”:”https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/04/28/11/97777491-0-image-a-60_1745835455353.jpg”,”uploadDate”:”2025-04-28T11:19:54+0100″,”description”:”Chesterfield’s own Seagull Boy Cooper Wallace retained junior gold at the contestheld in Belgium and scored higher than hungry competitors, including his own seven-year-old sister.”,”contentUrl”:”https://videos.metro.co.uk/video/met/2025/04/28/6448620409996098333/480x270_MP4_6448620409996098333.mp4″,”height”:480,”width”:270}

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video

Up Next

window.addEventListener(‘metroVideo:relatedVideosCarouselLoaded’, function(data) {
if (typeof(data.detail) === ‘undefined’ || typeof(data.detail.carousel) === ‘undefined’ || typeof(data.detail.carousel.el_) === ‘undefined’) {
return;
}
var player = data.detail.carousel.el_;
var container = player.closest(‘.metro-video-player’);
var placeholder = container.querySelector(‘.metro-video-player__up-next-placeholder’);
container.removeChild(placeholder);
container.classList.add(‘metro-video-player–related-videos-loaded’);
});

A 10-year-old boy from Derbyshire has retained his European Gull Screeching Championships crown.

Cooper Wallace won junior gold at the unusual competition in Belgium, where he was up against 21 other contenders, including his little sister Shelby, who came fourth.

Second place in the junior category went to a Belgian contestant, while Toby Shakeshaft, from Leeds, came third.

Cooper, who lives in Newbold, near Chesterfield, said: ‘It was cool to have two English boys on the podium – there were so many cheers.’

The youngster, appropriately dressed as a seagull, won a gold medal and a hamper packed with sweets, biscuits, crips and fizzy drinks, reports Derbyshire Times.

‘The hamper is much bigger than last year. You have really got to put your legs in to lift it. We also got seagull badges,’ Cooper said.

The siblings’ mum, Lauren added: ‘I’m unbelievably proud. Both children did absolutely brilliantly on the stage.

Seagull Boy — Cooper Wallace, 10, giving the crowd his best seagull impression (Picture: BBC/family photo)

‘It was a very close call this year. The atmosphere was amazing, even busier than last year and there were film crews everywhere.’

Cooper also secured the top spot last year, when he was the first Brit to ever enter the competition, held in De Panne.

Before this year’s championships, Shelby told ITV News that the past year had ‘been absolutely crazy’ and that he was feeling ‘quite nervous’ with the pressure.

He admitted his sister, who took part for the first time this year, was ‘really good too’.

The contest sees participants mimic the call and actions of the bird before being given a score out of 100.

Cooper started imitating seagulls after one swooped down and stole his sandwich and nipped his finger while he was on a trip to the seaside.

In the days leading up to Sunday’s contest, the Wallace family have been shadowed by a Korean film crew who are shooting a documentary on seagulls and the competition.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Europe’s best seagull impersonator has been crowned – a 10-year-old boy from Derbyshire

Leave a Reply Cancel reply