TV legend praises King for stripping Owl Sanctuary founder of MBE

Paul Allen Rose of Walney was sentenced in May 2024 after pleading guilty to two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.

He also pleaded to one count of failing to ensure animal welfare, contrary to Section 4 and Section 9 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

He was given a 20-week jail sentence, suspended for two years, and a notice published by The Gazette earlier this month said Rose had his MBE title stripped due to a criminal conviction.

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King Charles III. (Image: Chris Jackson/PA Wire)

A statement on The Gazette, an Official Public Record, said: “The King has directed that the appointment of Paul Allen Rose to be a Member of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated December 31, 2001, shall be cancelled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order.”

A court heard Cumbria Police and the RSPCA conducted inspections at two of the charity’s aviaries on March 8, 2022.

A total of 26 owls were seized from a lockup on Brady’s Yard after they were found to have been crammed into cramped, cluttered cages in an aviary that had no windows and a further five owls were seized from his property on Foxfield Lane, Walney.

When RSPCA inspectors visited the two premises to check on the birds’ welfare, they found owls with neurological conditions and others with current or previous injuries, which did not appear to have received the necessary veterinary care.

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Michaela Strachan. (Image: BBC / Jo Charlesworth / PA)

Now, TV presenter and wildlife expert Michaela Strachan has spoken on the subject during an exclusive chat with the Oxford Mail this week.

The Springwatch star was speaking ahead of her Not Just a Wild Life live show tour, which begins next month and features a date in nearby Newbury on Wednesday, April 29.

With Rose’s MBE loss making national headlines this month, Ms Strachan was asked for her take on the situation.

“I can’t really say too much about it because I didn’t know anything about it before,” she said.

“But I think obviously if anyone is cruel to wildlife, whether it’s now or in the past, then it’s great that they’re being called out on it.”

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RSCPA inspectors at the site. (Image: RSPCA)

In most cases, the birds were being kept in cramped, unsuitable conditions, including dog crates not much wider than their wing span, a court heard.

Rose, who served as an RAF reservist for many years, was awarded an MBE on December 31, 2001, for services to the defence industry.

The charity founder received a ban from owning or keeping all birds for five years to give him ‘time to engage in educational work’.

The order also prohibited Rose from controlling or influencing the way in which birds are kept.

You can find more coverage from the Oxford Mail’s exclusive interview with Ms Strachan on our website in the coming days.