A guinea pig club from Oldham whose show pigs once made their way to a Sheryl Crow concert is set to feature in a "groundbreaking" film.
A new one-of-its-kind guinea pig documentary, The Keepers of the Pigs, is set to screen at Odeon Oldham later this month and has some impressive celebrity and heart-warming local links.
The film features members of the Oldham Cavy Club which has been running a guinea pig show for decades.
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One member of the club, David Beckham-Doyle, even took his special show pigs to a Sheryl Crow concert in Manchester after discovering the singer is a guinea pig fanatic.
David, who has been showing and breeding long-haired guinea pigs since he was eight, discusses the incredible moment he took some special show pigs to meet the star in Sheryl's dressing room.
But the documentary primarily follows the humourous adventure of director, Sharon Walia, and rescue centre owner, Shaz Kelly, on their voyage from the UK to Peru to discover the 'forgotten history' of the guinea pig.
The idea for the film was born when freelance journalist, Sharon, filmed a news report about a local guinea pig rescue in the midlands which went viral.
She then juggled jobs as a journalist and in Parliament to make the film, travelling to South America between Covid-19 lockdowns and editing the footage at home in the evenings.
Sharon said: "As an animal lover and vegan, filming people eating guinea pigs was one of the hardest things I've ever done, but never have I been to a country that celebrates an animal like Peru does the guinea pig."
Keeper of the Pigs is earmarked to be one of the first major documentaries about the curious creatures with exclusive insight into the launch of a new breed of guinea pig in Peru and coverage of the annual guinea pig festival which has never been filmed before.
It also covers unique access to two of the biggest sanctuaries in the country and discusses how guinea pigs boost economic opportunities for indigenous women in Peru.
The director and journalist added: "Viewers will also get the opportunity to hear the story of a man who was buried in a guinea pig-inspired coffin, as well as witnessing footage from two of the biggest guinea pig sanctuaries in the UK, so hopefully people will be able to get a real insight into these furry creatures on the big screen."
The big screening will premiere at 5pm on Sunday, January 21 at Odeon Oldham.
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