SOUTHAMPTON'S best known ferret Frankie has died on the eve of what would have been his biggest showbiz break.
Six-year-old Frankie died of a suspected heart attack just a day before he was due to appear on morning television with Keith Chegwyn after winning a place in the final of a national competition to find Britain's Pet Idol.
Frankie had been receiving medication after being diagnosed with an enlarged heart but owner Pat Othen, 51, had hoped he would recover to perform his trademark mobile phone hide-and-seek trick for a national audience.
She said: "I am absolutely devastated. After years of trying he was about to get his big break."
Frankie was best known for his appearances on You've Been Framed. He also featured in the Daily Echo this year when he was rescued by firefighters after a fridge leaked toxic fumes near to his cage at his Kenilworth Road home.
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