"WAITER, there's a cat in my soup!"

Archaeologists have discovered that bar meals served at pubs in 18th Century Durham City had a secret ingredient.

They have also unearthed evidence that oysters were the pork scratchings of the day.

A dig on the site of the city's Millennium Hall, which is under construction in Claypath, revealed an unusually high number of cat bones and oyster shells.

The area was once occupied by several taverns and the find has thrown light on drinkers' eating habits.

Student Florence Drew, 28, said: "Lots of cat bones were found, which points to some chefs serving cat in stew and pretending it was hare or chicken."

Fellow student Owain Lloyd James, 23, said: "The sheer number of oyster shells found suggests oyster was quite a common food and it must have been considered a delicacy.

"The number also suggests there must have been a source locally."

The findings are part of the Pubs in the Past exhibition, being held at The Old Fulling Mill Museum of Archaeology, The Banks, Durham City.

Presented by Durham University Museum and Artefact Studies students, it also includes the biggest find of post-medieval glassware discovered in Britain.

Durham City had 75 pubs in the 18th Century, compared to the 25 it has now.

Owain said: "The purpose of the pub was to socialise and socialising hasn't changed much so the pubs probably haven't changed that much in terms of atmosphere, though you wouldn't get any theme pubs. Imported pottery from China was discovered, which also suggests some degree of affluence."

Pubs in the Past runs until December 10, daily during October, between 11am and 4pm, and from Monday to Friday, during November and December, between 11.30am and 3.30pm.

Admission to The Old Fulling Mill is £1 for adults, 50p for concessions and £2.50 for a family ticket.