Mary Berry to Blofeld: Bizarre queries to council call centres Published duration 31 August 2015

image caption Baking queen Mary Berry prompted one of the unusual calls in Somerset

Questions on everything from James Bond villains to Great British Bake Off cake tins have been received by council call centres in England.

"What time does your website close?" in Poole and "Can I exercise my kestrel on your tip?" in Nottingham are among the top ten bizarre calls of the last year.

Three of ten were made in Somerset, including: "What are the rules and regulations for hosting a mouse race?"

Councils are people's "first port of call" whatever the query, says the LGA.

The Local Government Association said councils' customer service hubs in England and Wales handled more than 50 million calls a year - the bulk of which are about council tax and parking.

But it compiled its top ten of the "slightly amusing to the outright bizarre" queries received in the past 12 months.

Peter Fleming, of the LGA, said: "These light-hearted examples of calls highlight the variety of issues that councils deal with every day."

Do you know how much water I need to cook super noodles? (Stevenage Borough Council) What are the rules and regulations for hosting a mouse race? (Somerset County Council) Can I exercise my kestrel on your tip? (Nottinghamshire County Council) A call from an elderly lady asking for help on her crossword. Seven letters, James Bond's cat-loving nemesis, begins with B? (Staffordshire County Council) What is the daily room rate at the Holiday Inn express? (Stevenage Borough Council) What size tin is required for the Mary Berry strawberry tart featured on the BBC's Great British Bake Off? (Somerset County council) I met a boy whilst on holiday in Ibiza, but I've lost his number. He said he lived in Nottingham and his dad is a bin man, do you know him? (Nottinghamshire County Council) How many geese are on the boating lake in Cleethorpes this year? (The caller wanted to visit but had an allergy to feathers - North East Lincolnshire Council) What time does your website close? (Poole Borough Council) How high is Mount Kilimanjaro? (Somerset County Council)