I can't remember the exact year, but it was at least 13/14 years ago, we had just moved to Easington which is a couple of miles from Spurn Head, E.Yorks.
We (my wife and I) had not been interested in birding before, but Spurn, the sea etc. you have to give it a go, it was my birthday, (Late October) so I decided that I would like a telescope to help with our new interest.
We decided to drive into Hull to get me one.
Whilst I was reversing my car out of our drive, I spotted a bird, wings splayed, laying/flapping about on the road. I got out to have a look at it. It hadn't been hit by a car, I couldn't see any injuries on it at all. I decided it was either exhausted or had flown into something (do birds get concussion?). I picked it up, it had a lot of fleas/mites. I thought "I'll put it somewhere safe, while we drive to Hull and back".
So a shoe box (no lid), a bit of straw and a dish of water were provided for it in our conservatory, and off we went. A few hours later I returned the proud owner of an Opticron HR60 and a couple of field guides.
We checked up on the bird in the conservatory, it was exactly where we had left it but it was now an 'Ex' bird.
Oh well into the bin with it.
Might as well look it up in my new Guide to British/European Birds.
I couldn't find an exact match in the book, (I never can). But even a birding newcomer like me could tell that it was a Swift, unmistakable shape, but it wasn't the right colour, It was brown with a speckled chest - Swift dressed as a darkish coloured thrush. Must be a juvenille I think.
Next day woken by the bin men, I dash off to Spurn Head with my new scope, spotting away like crazy, I ventured into the Hut where they keep the daily list, top of the list is 'Possible Asian Mottled Swift'.
"Oh", I thought "that's what it was".
Back at the house, the local weekly paper has arrived, the Countryside column is talking about the excitement of the as yet unconfirmed FIRST EVER SIGHTING IN THE UK of the Asian Mottled Swift at Spurn Head.
The thing had died in my conservatory, I had thrown it in a bin bag, and the bin men had been, - nothing to do but keep an embarrassed silence on the subject, no one would believe me.
I have since seen pictures of the Swift and to the best of my recollection it was definitely the bird.
So to any of the poor souls who thought they had seen a first for Britain but not had it confirmed - you can at least go over the faint tick with a bit harder pencil.
*checks calendar* No its not Apr 1st :)
Didn't you take a photo before you consigned it to the bin? I can't bear to put dead birds in the bin - we have had a few window impact deaths over the years, but I just put them in an overgrown part of the garden - it seems more natural that way.