HOUNDTON TABBY

FROM MRS Patmore to Lady Sybil, these barking mad illustrations show the WOOF-er side of some of our most loved Downton characters. The art works entitled 'Houndton Tabby', were designed by illustrator and artist Kim Parkhurst, 39, after she combined her love of drawing and Downton Abbey. 'I've been painting portraits of animals in historical costume for some time,” explains New Yorker Kim. “I've taken some familiar and beloved characters whose demeanour, personality, and appearance seemed to translate to certain breeds of dog or cat. 'I got to thinking about Mr Bates' character and storyline, and Brendan Coyle's facial structure, and how he could look hard but also had the warmest, kindest eyes.

Other great stories
FIGHTING BLACKBACK GORILLAS

FISTS fly as two gorillas take each other on in a dramatic battle .

RELAXING SNOW MONKEY

WITHOUT A care in the world, this little snow monkey puts his feet up and settles in for a snooze .

PELT-MOBILE SPOTTED

A TAXIDERMY truck spotted in America’s Deep South could be the most gruesome wagon on the road .

NATURE PAPS

NATURE PAPARAZZIS prove you don't have to be Justin Bieber or Cheryl Cole to attract a pack of photographers .

NEW DELHI CHILD RAPE PROTESTS

NEW DELHI, A woman activist of India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party crosses a police barricade near the residence of ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi during a protest against the recent rape of a five-year-old girl in New Delhi, India, April 21, 2013 .

GOLDEN EAGLE FESTIVAL

RACING through the mountain range on horseback, the Kazakh people practice their ancient tradition of hunting with golden eagles .

ADORABLE ORANGUTAN TURNS ONE

An adorable orangutan named Pongo celebrates his first birthday at Zoo Atlanta, Georgia, America .

KUNG-FU FROG IMITATES KARATE KID

Balanced on one leg, a frog assumes the crane kick martial arts stance made famous in the movie The Karate Kid .

CRICKET FINDS AN UNUSUAL SEAT

A cricket perches on an unusual seat after crawling up the snout of a crocodile .

DIGIT-AL ART: HANDY COLLECTION UNVEILED

Here's a collection of art for the DIGIT-AL age as these fascinating illusions of landmarks, places and even a banana are made using just a pair of hands .

VIBRANT TIME-LAPSE VIDEOS CAPTURE BLOSSOMING FLOWERS

VIBRANT bursts of colour fill the screen as beautiful flowers blossom in these time-lapse videos .

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE BUG KIND

THIS alien-like bug would look more at home in outer-space but it can actually be found wriggling around here on Earth .