'Pass the phone, Charlie'

You know what it's like ... a mobile phone rings, you dash around trying to find it. You scrabble around in your pockets and in bags but it's nowhere to be seen.

Where's the last, the very last place you'd expect to find it?

How about INSIDE a dog?

That's where Rachael Murray discovered the mobile phone she'd planned to give her flatmate!

The phone had vanished from under her Christmas tree so she dialled the number to try to find out where it had gone.

Trail leads to bloodhound

To her amazement, she heard a faint ringing from 10-stone bloodhound Charlie.

Rachel, 27, from Hendon, in north London, told The Sun newspaper: "At first I thought Charlie was lying on the phone - then I realised where it was.

"I couldn't believe he'd swallowed it. I sat there in disbelief."

She was even more mystified 24 hours later when the £29.99 Orange Nokia emerged in perfect working order after nature had taken its course.

Dog's number up

Orange customer services gave Rachel the number so she could ring the lost phone.

A spokesman for Orange said: "The dog swallowed the phone while it was under the Christmas tree.

"All I can say is that we are delighted that customer services could help."

The phone was intended as a present for Rachel's flatmate Tony Dangerfield - but the couple only found a pile of wrapping paper when they looked under the tree.

Rachel said: "We searched everywhere for the phone but couldn't find it anywhere.

"I couldn't stop laughing when I saw Charlie had eaten it. But then I got worried it might make him ill."

The pair took the dog to the vet but were told Charlie should be able to pass the phone.

She added: "Suddenly it just popped out, we couldn't stay cross for long."