London: The RSPCA is investigating after a prominent British lawyer boasted of clubbing a fox to death in central London while hungover and wearing his wife's kimono.

Jo Maugham, QC, announced on Boxing Day that he had killed the creature with a baseball bat, triggering an angry backlash and debate over how to handle nuisance foxes that roam the streets of the British capital after dark.

Foxes can often be found in central London searching for food scraps and small animals. Credit:AP

"Already this morning I have killed a fox with a baseball bat. How's your Boxing Day going?" the lawyer said on Twitter.

Asked to explain his actions by social media users, the barrister initially defended himself by arguing the fox was caught in protective netting around the chicken coop and that he "wasn't sure what else to do".