Valentines day can be a gloomy time for singletons, especially if you’re suffering from a heartbreak, but a wildlife centre in Kent has just the thing to cheer you up.

Hemsley Conservation Centre in Meopham, Sevenoaks, is giving you the chance to get revenge on an ex-someone by naming a cockroach after them.

The online scheme lets you name a hissing cockroach which originates from Madagascar, for yourself or for a friend and you even get a certificate for proof.

Bitter singletons across the world have taken part in the scheme which has raised thousands of pounds for the centre’s conservation.

So far, the most popular names have been Chris and Donald Trump, who clearly aren’t lovebugs.

Henry Weedon, a keeper at Hemsley Conservation Centre says the park have been blown away by the response and they can’t wait to spend the money on renovating homes for their many animals.

“The reaction so far has been incredible, people have been going all out with messages, telling us how this has really helped cheer them up, even though it’s something funny and quite petty.

 

“It’s helping our animal conservation so much, there are so many avenues we can now go down, it’s helped us so much, it’s fantastic.”

Some of the visitors are even warming to the now famous cockroaches after keepers are encouraging the nominees to think twice before being cruel to the bugs and say they are in fact, very important to the environment.

Zookeeper Henry Weedon said: “Cockroaches are actually fascinating. The majority of cockroaches aren’t found in people’s home, they’re found in the wild doing really important stuff.

“Not only are they helping to breakdown lots of rotting and decay that would prevent plants and trees and other things growing, but they are also a really important part of the food chain.”

So even if you’re happily in love this valentines day but are struggling for a gift to give, naming a cockroach might just be a very thoughtful idea… or a way to become single.