An innocent Tyneside resident, who was only after information on bin collections, accidentally sent a rude message to her local council.

Brenda Boyd wanted to know if her garden bin would be collected as normal and tweeted North Tyneside Council to find out.

After they responded to confirm “it is” happening, Brenda confessed she “may have the wrong glasses on” as she responded with a middle finger emoji rather than a thumbs up.

“Oh my goodness I’ve just had another proper look – really sorry,” she replied after a little more reflection.

Where the hilarious misunderstanding happened.

The council saw the funny side of it all and responded with laughter emojis, assuring Brenda: “You’ve brought tears to my eyes.

"After a weird couple of weeks, it’s good to laugh.”

The response to Brenda’s slip-of-the-finger was overwhelmingly positive, with one commenting: “Brenda it’s great British humor [sic]. Thx [thanks] for being a good sport.”

Another said: “Brenda is the hero nobody asked for but we desperately need.”