Sunderland's links with the king of the jungle on World Lion Day - including Wallace, Lambton and some hidden others

The king of the jungle is being celebrated today. And here's nine reasons why Sunderland should be joining in with World Lion Day.

Inquisitive creatures would come up to your car

The Hon Isabella Lambton and Jimmy Chipperfield opened Lambton Lion Park in 1972 and people were soon turning up to see the pride of 40 lions.

As you drove around the 200 acre site, it was not unusual to have these magnificent beasts approaching your car or bus.

The lion park finally closed in 1980 as spiralling costs played a part.

Hero of a thousand combats

Maccomo the lion tamer was a Sunderland resident who died on January 11, 1871, while staying at the Palatine Hotel.

He died after suffering from rheumatic fever. In his earlier years, he was employed by William Mander’s Grand National Menagerie and went by various names.

He was billed as The African Wild Beast Tamer’ and sometimes The Hero of a Thousand Combats’.

In 2012, pupils from Bishop Harland School were having a sleepover at Sunderland Museum - right by the figure of Wallace the Lion.

Were you one of the students in the picture?

Wallace was a huge Wearside attraction. He was known by thousands of Wearsiders and was bought by the Museum in 1879.

The lion which toured Sunderland in an open-topped car

He was bred in captivity and he was, along with other lions and tigers, as part of a lion-taming act which toured the country in the 1860s.

Wallace has only left the Museum once when he toured Sunderland in the July 1919 Peace Parade, standing behind a woman dressed as Britannia on an open-topped car.

Jason the lion club had a few hours of freedom in 1975.

He jumped from his cage at Seaburn and enjoyed a spot of roaming round the zoo park before being returned to safety.

Mowbray Park has its own lion statues.

In fact it has six sandstone lions which are regularly used by keen photographers for a spectacular backdrop.

They guard the ends of the balustrades on the North and South Terrace and have replaced the original lions which were worn out.

Wearside even has a lion link to a big movie.

The movie star with local links

William Inge Lindon-Travers, the son of Florence and William Halton Lindon-Travers, grew up to be an actor but only after serving his country from the age of 18.

The Cleadon lad left the armed forces in 1947 to become a star of the silver screen and vocal animal rights campaigner.

He played the role of conservationist George Adamson in the highly successful 1966 film Born Free, which told the tale of Elsa the lioness.

Bill Travers became involved in the Zoo Check Campaign in 1984, which evolved into the Born Free Foundation in 1991.

Support the campaign to protect lions

He spent the last three years of his life travelling around Europe’s slum zoos, making a TV documentary exposing the appalling suffering of thousands of captive animals.

Sunderland's coat of arms also includes lions. There is a Lion Or on the Dexter side and a Lion Azure on the Sinister side.

And the biggest reason of all to support World Lion Day is because it is a global project to raise awareness of this big cat and the dangers it faces.

There are thought to be only 50,000 left worldwide because of poaching and hunting.

Find out more here.