A Whisker From Glory: Wicksteed Park’s Baby Guinea Pigs Are Cheering On England’s World Cup Bid

If you needed any proof that England fever has properly taken over Northamptonshire this summer, here it is: the newest residents of Wicksteed Park can’t get enough of it either. I love a quirky local story, and this one — baby guinea pigs squealing with joy every time the Three Lions score — is exactly the kind of daft, lovely thing that makes me smile. Here’s the official word from the team at Wicksteed Park.

A Whisker From Glory! Wicksteed Park’s Baby Guinea Pigs Support England’s World Cup Bid

A herd of baby Guinea Pigs have become the England football team’s littlest fans – as watching Three Lions World Cup games makes them squeal with delight.

Animal keepers began playing matches to the six furry new arrivals at Wicksteed Park, Kettering, to help get them used to humans and make them less shy.

Now they squeal – or wheek – with joy whenever the games are played to them on a mobile phone propped up in their enclosure in the park’s Wicky’s Farmyard animal attraction.

Wheeking is a loud, high-pitched squeal or whistle of pure excitement—typically made when Guinea Pigs are greeting someone or know it is feeding time.

The animals have been at their noisiest during England games, particularly when Harry Kane scored in the 4-2 victory over Croatia, leading animal keepers to declare them the team’s smallest fans and decorate their cage with England flags to support the team.

The four-month-old old Guinea Pigs have also now been given nicknames to match the England squad – including Harry, Jordan and even Thomas after manager Thomas Tuchel.

“Baby Guinea Pigs are naturally quite shy so playing them human voices and sounds which replicate the general noise around the park helps them to settle into their new environment. We’ve discovered that World Cup matches or highlights, with the noise of the crowd and the sound of the commentators, are a great way to do this, but we didn’t realise that they would enjoy it so much, particularly when England are playing!”

Kelly Richardson, Wicksteed Park Director

Wicksteed Park combines a 281-acre estate including beautiful, listed parkland with more than 25 rides and attractions for all the family and is now open every weekend, bank holiday and school holiday until the first week in October.

As well as the Guinea Pigs, Wicky’s Farmyard features pigs, giant continental rabbits, bunnies, ducks and chickens.

Other attractions include the iconic water chute, which has just celebrated its 100th birthday.

Family favourites also include Dinosaur Valley rollercoaster, Jolly Jockeys, Wicky’s Farmyard and the Railway, along with the Carousel, Sway Rider and Pig n’ Putt Crazy Golf.

After listening to feedback from visitors, the price of on-day wristbands purchased at the park has been reduced from £25 to £19.25 (£22 from September 2), to match the online purchase price.

Children under 0.9m get to experience the joy of Wicksteed Park for FREE with an accompanying paying adult.

The park has been praised for providing a highly enjoyable and memorable family day out in an assessment by national tourist board VisitEngland.

Awarding the Kettering park a score of 84%, VisitEngland said the attraction remains a well-established and much-loved visitor attraction, offering an excellent balance of traditional family entertainment, expansive green space, and historical significance.

For further information on all the above, go to wicksteedpark.org

Guinea Pigs originated in the Andes region of South America, where wild guinea pigs can still be found.

They have enjoyed widespread popularity as a pet since their introduction to Europe and North America by European traders in the 16th century. Their docile nature and friendly responsiveness to handling and feeding and the relative ease of caring for them have continued to make them a popular choice of household pets.

I don’t know about you, but I’m already half-tempted to pop along to Wicky’s Farmyard just to see if Harry, Jordan and Thomas are still wheeking their way through the tournament. If you’re after more ideas like this — quirky local stories, days out and what’s actually worth your time across Northamptonshire — pop your email in for my weekly what’s on newsletter and I’ll do the digging for you. And if the kids fancy turning a visit into a proper outdoor adventure, our free nature scavenger hunt is a brilliant excuse to explore the parkland beyond the animals too.

The events listed in this guide are run by third-party organisers, and all details were correct at the time of publication, based on information from their official websites. However, changes or cancellations can happen at short notice. To avoid any disappointment, we recommend double-checking the event information on the official websites before making plans.