Webcam cheddar fetches £1,145 on eBay

Webcam cheddar fetches £1,145 on eBay


'Wedginald' auctioned off for BBC Children in Need

Wedginald, the cheddar cheese watched by millions over the internet, has tipped the scales at £1,145 in an eBay auction.

The proceeds from the sale, won by a wine maker from New Zealand, have been donated to BBC Children in Need.

The 20kg cheddar was produced by West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers, and surfers from around the world were able to watch it mature via a webcam.

What started out as a novel PR stunt captured the attention of major internet communities and became something of an internet legend.

Wedginald has been maturing on the Cheddarvision webcam since last year. It has been viewed by nearly 1.7 million people, and generated thousands of 'friends' on social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook.

"All of us at Cheddarvision HQ are delighted with the result of the auction of Wedginald," said a spokesman for West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers.

"We thought the star of Cheddarvision deserved a fitting send off, and for him to be jetting off to New Zealand to join a wine maker originally from Chard in Somerset is the perfect end to a great year."

Over 10,000 viewers flocked to the site in September to watch the cheese being tested for maturity.