A gruesome request from the founder of animal rights group PETA will see the organisation attempt to send part of her body to King Charles after she dies.
Never a stranger to controversy, animal rights extremist Ingrid Newkirk has long said she will have her flesh fried in a human barbecue after death, to persuade people against eating meat.
Now, aged 73, she has updated her will with grisly instructions to send part of her neck to the monarch, if he fails to cut ties with pigeon-racing, as she says the necks of ‘losing’ birds are often wrung after they return.
After militant animal rights activists tried to halt the Grand National in April, Miss Newkirk has asked for one of her legs to be removed from her dead body, broken and sent to Aintree, to draw attention to animals which have been injured while racing.
She wants her windpipe sent to dog show Crufts, as she says they promote the breeding of flat-faced dogs like bulldogs and pugs, which struggle to breathe.
Never a stranger to controversy, animal rights extremist Ingrid Newkirk has long said she will have her flesh fried in a human barbecue after death, to persuade people against eating meat
A portion of her heart is bequeathed to Elon Musk, who she says must not have one, due to ‘cruel’ experiments on animals to develop his mind-reading Neuralink brain implant.
Miss Newkirk, who has filed the instructions with the lawyer who will be her executor, said: ‘On his deathbed, they asked Bob Hope where he wanted to be buried and he apparently replied, “surprise me”.
‘In my case, when I die, I hope to keep on surprising those who harm animals, provoking conversation about speciesism, and campaigning against animal abuse.’
Frank Furedi, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent, said: ‘Of course this is a grotesque publicity stunt designed to erode the distinction between humans and animals.
‘However there is a dark side to a stunt that treats human body parts as if they are disposable garbage – its aim is to animalise humans and humanise animals.’
Miss Newkirk, who is still posing naked as part of her campaigning work, aged 73, has previously hitched herself up to a horse-drawn carriage.
Her will states that her skin should be made into purses and other leather products, to raise awareness of animals being used this way.
But she has now announced that some of her skin will also be sent to the Ministry of Defence, to protest against real bear skin hats being worn by the King’s Guards when fake-fur versions are available.
The targeting of Royal use of animal products comes despite King Charles’s love of animals, which saw him bring in a policy that his chefs should not buy foie gras and has reportedly seen it banned at Buckingham Palace also.
She has updated her will with grisly instructions to send part of her neck to King Charles if he fails to cut ties with pigeon-racing, as she says the necks of ‘losing’ birds are often wrung after they return
Foie gras, known as ‘torture in a tin’, is the liver of a goose or duck which has been fattened by force-feeding them.
Miss Newkirk has also bequeathed her intestines to chef Nusret Gökçe, also known as Salt Bae, to use as sausage casings in his restaurants, and an ear to the king of Spain in protest against bullfighting, in which the matador often cuts off the bull’s ears as a trophy.
Her hair will be made into brushes and sent to Truefitt & Hill, the barber shop whose badger hair brushes are sold in Harrods.
Bill Lambert, a spokesman for Crufts, said: ‘Whilst we are deeply concerned about the welfare of some flat-faced dogs, and have developed a breathing assessment with the University of Cambridge to protect and improve their health which is offered for free at Crufts, we don’t believe shock tactics and gruesome stunts like those outlined by PETA will help to resolve irresponsible buying and breeding, or result in any positive change for these popular dogs.’
A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said: ‘Bears are not hunted to order for the MOD. Instead, the bear pelts used are a product of legal and licensed hunts, sourced exclusively from the regulated Canadian market.’
Buckingham Palace declined to comment.
