The last surviving chimpanzee of the PG Tips television adverts, in which they played humans, is finally learning how to be an ape. Choppers, a 42-year-old chimpanzee, appeared in adverts in the 1970s and 80s as a 007 parody called Brooke Bond.

Since the death last summer of her partner Louis, she has been introduced to undomesticated chimps at Twycross Zoo in Leicestershire, according to a report in the Times (£) .

Dr Charlotte Macdonald, the zoo’s head of life sciences, said that Choppers and the other PG Tips chimps had not learnt how to integrate with other chimpanzees.

She said: “They were mixed up. At the time, people didn't understand chimp behaviour enough to know the damage being done.