A man puzzled as to how mess in his garden shed kept being tidied away overnight has discovered the mystery cleaner was actually a mouse.

Stephen Mckears, 72, initially thought he had a house proud ghost helping him to keep his worktop clean and deliberately started emptying a tub with nuts, bolts and screws across the shed every evening as a test.

By the time the sun came up, Mr Mckears would find everything neatly put away.

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Stephen Mckears, 72, would empty a tub of nuts and bolts each night but they kept getting put away (Picture: SWNS)

After it went on for a month, he enlisted the help of neighbour Rodney Holbrook, 70, to set up a trail camera and find out who was responsible.




They were shocked when the footage showed their vigilante cleaner was in fact a tiny mouse who would spend more than two hours a night cleaning the shed.

The little creature would even attempt to lift objects twice his size – including the chain of an electric drill and the end of a hose.

Stephen, from Severn Beach, South Gloucestershire, said: ‘I’ve been calling him Brexit Mouse because he’s been stockpiling for Brexit.’

Rodney has come up with his own name for the mouse – Metal Mickey – and said he jumped at the chance to help because he had to ‘see the DIY mouse’ for himself.

The vigilante cleaner was unmasked as a little mouse (Picture: Rodney Holbrook / SWNS)

Stephen and his friend Rodney Holbrook, 70, set up cameras to catch the action (Picture: SWNS)

He added: ‘I was quite amazed to see it – it is an amazing mouse.

‘It was chucking things into the box – we thought it was a ghost or something at first.’

The mouse was filmed tidying away the metal objects from midnight to 2.30am, and Stephen said: ‘He must have had to go for a sleep after it.

‘I’ve seen a mouse moving objects to make a nest but never metal objects. It’s quite amazing.

‘It’s still busy doing it now.’

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