A chicken belonging to Cherhill resident Maggie Moore has laid an egg more than double the normal size.

Mrs Moore, 62, who has three chickens named Freckles, Amber and Rocky, was surprised to find an egg weighing 126 grammes in their nest box last week. An average egg weighs about 56.7gms, making her find quite a rarity.

Mrs Moore, who used to work at the Tourist Information Centre in Devizes, said she brought Freckles and Amber more than two months ago to keep Rocky company after another of her hens died.

She is still not sure who laid the egg, although Rocky has been ruled out because she has stopped laying eggs and before this she would lay blue eggs instead of brown ones.

Mrs Moore, who is planning to eat the egg for breakfast or lunch one day, said: “I was astounded, I have to say, because it’s such an enormous egg.

“A lot of people have chickens, there’s nothing exciting about having chickens, but it is exciting to have a chicken with such a big egg.

“I had one before, that was 92 grammes and I thought that was enormous, but I’ve never had one as big as 126 grammes. “I wonder whether it was all the corn – I don’t know if that’s had any influence.

“I love having chickens, they’re quite companionable. Fresh eggs taste particularly nice when they’re from free-range chickens.”