A WANDERING cat who had been missing for two weeks found his way back home on the train – and even managed to get off at the right stop.

Thirteen-year-old Charlie vanished from his home in Accrington a couple of weeks ago and hadn’t been seen since, until he got off a busy commuter train in the town on Monday.

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Rail staff believe Charlie, who only moved to Accrington in April, had boarded the train in Colne and spent half an hour on the service, ignoring stops at seven stations before getting off at Accrington.

Owner Kinder Kaur, of Whalley Road, jokingly suggested Charlie might have needed a holiday or some time on his own to deal with a mid-life crisis.

Andy Richards, of rescue centre East Lancashire Cats, was stunned when he got a phone call to tell him a feline had just got off a train at Accrington.

He said: “A friend of mine got off the train and rang me to say she had just seen a cat get off it.

“I couldn’t believe it but I went to have a look and sure enough he was just sat there on the platform.

“The train staff think he got on at Colne because the doors are open for a long time there.

“We took Charlie in and he turned out to be microchipped, which is very rare for a stray cat, and when we checked it suggested he belonged to an address in Warrington, but when I rang the phone number it said it was out of service.

“I then posted a photo on Facebook and amazingly a friend from the centre who re-homed Charlie recognised him and put me in touch with the owner.

“It was an amazing piece of luck to finish an incredible story. It’s bizarre. I’ve never heard of anything like it.

“I just don’t know how he knew to get off at Accrington. They say cats have an amazing homing sense but I’ve never known this before.”

Mrs Kaur said it was not the first time that Charlie had gone missing since they re-homed him more than five months ago.

She said: “He went missing a few weeks before this, but he was in the gardens of the nursing home down the road.

“This time he had been gone for a while. We had tried the rescue centres and the RSPCA but we heard nothing.

“We were starting to think he might be something of a wanderer, but it’s unbelievable to think he might have gone so far.

“He’s a friendly cat. He’s very laid back.

“We’ve got another cat called Billy so we were thinking maybe he didn’t like sharing the attention, but he’s settled back home fine.

“Maybe he just wanted a holiday, or was having a mid-life crisis. He just wants to see more of the world.

“We’re so happy to have him back. My 14-year-old daughter Kelly is very happy.

“Charlie was quite a big cat anyway. He’s lost a little bit of weight, but not loads.

“I’d love to know where he has been.”