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'Monkey lady' of Mount Middleton delights in plush primates

With more than 100 plush monkeys and ornaments dangling down the trees, this New Brunswick woman has turned her home into a spectacle of exotic monkeys.

Diane Alcock showcases huge collection of stuffed monkeys swinging on trees in front of her home

Aniekan Etuhube · CBC News ·
Diane Alcock has created a plush jungle in her front yard in Mount Middleton, near Sussex, with her collection of stuffed primates. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC)

There's some monkey business going on at a home in Mount Middleton, a small community near Sussex.

Hundreds of stuffed primates — hanging from trees, sitting on lawn chairs, sporting hats and sunglasses — create a jungle-land spectacle in rural New Brunswick.

The monkeys, baboons, chimpanzees and orangutans hang from, and sit on, the trees and lawn at Diane Alcock's house. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC News)

Diane Alcock is the person who created and oversees this plush zoo. 

Known as the monkey lady, over the past 26 years Alcock has collected more than 500 monkeys, orangutans, baboons and chimpanzees, though not all are on display in her yard. Many are in her house and garage, as well.

WATCH / Monkey business: stuffed apes swinging on treetops

‘Monkey lady’ thrills New Brunswickers with arrangement of stuffed animals

2 years ago
Duration 4:22
With more than 100 stuffed monkeys, chimpanzees and orangutans dangling from her trees, this N.B. woman turns her home into an exotic spectacle

Alcock said she enjoys the reaction the primates provoke when people discover her colourful yard, especially among children.

"People just stop and take pictures and yell awesome! It's neat," she said. "It's great.

"And the kids love it. We've got quite a few kids on the road that come up and look at the monkeys." 

Gordon and Diane Alcock holding two of the many apes that decorate their yard. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC News)

Alcock bought her first monkey, named Ralph, at a yard sale while at a campground in Mill Cove. 

When she positioned the primate in a tree on her site, she noticed people stopping to take photos. 

"Kids brought me some, and every yard sale I went to I bought monkeys," she said. "The kids just said, 'We are going to the monkey lady.' That's how I got the [nickname]."

Just monkeying around at the Alcocks' home in Mount Middleton. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC)

Hey, hey, we're the monkeys

She can't really explain why she loves this primate paradise so much.

Her real joy is seeing other people delight in the spectacle. She said it's what keeps her going. 

Chilling out in Mount Middleton on June day. (Aniekan Etuhube/CBC News)

"I didn't think it was going to grow as big as it did. It just happened. I like monkeys."  

She continues to frequent yard sales and flea markets looking for more to add to her troop.

She and her husband Gordon are looking to fill every bare branch within sight. 

"It's a feeling of enjoyment for us and satisfaction to see the kids appreciate something like that," Gordon said.

"If the kids appreciate it, we appreciate it."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Aniekan Etuhube

Videojournalist

Aniekan Etuhube is a videojournalist with CBC New Brunswick, based in Fredericton. He previously worked with Pulse.Africa and has far-reaching experience in visual storytelling and human interest stories.

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