A woman is seeking a monster million pound pay-out after claiming a freak full moon turned her into a werewolf.

Bridgette McFarlane's bad dreams convinced her she was in for a rude awakening after the eeriest full moon for more than 130 years.

Now Finchingfield insurance broker Simon Burgess could be well out of pocket after he insured the woman against turning into a creature of the night.

The cover ran from sunset on Wednesday to sunrise the next morning - a period which spookily saw the moon move much closer to the earth than normal.

Hours later Mrs McFarlane, 34, claimed her worst nightmare had come true.

A shocked Mr Burgess says she contacted him at 8.55am the following day and howled down the phone.

The insurance firm partner has not seen the evidence for himself. But he confirmed the policy was as real as it was weird.

The London mum still has to prove the terrible transformation took place to get her claws on the £1 million. She must be assessed by independent experts.

Mr Burgess said: "We have been notified of a potential claim and the burden of proof rests with the person making the claim.

"But the premium was paid and they have a valid insurance policy. It will take a little bit more than being hairy round the face."

"Obviously we will be awaiting the results with interest. It's most unlikely, but you never know."

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.