Some are escapees from "trad" lifestyles, blowing the whistle on the violence and ugliness right behind the shiny, happy veneer.

Prisoners - only 30 of the escapees were convicts, while the rest were awaiting trial - escaped by simply walking out of the gates, and disappeared into the darkness.

The two Portuguese escapees were serving 25-year sentences for offences including drug trafficking, criminal association, theft, robbery and kidnapping, Portugal's prison service told Reuters.

In England, there is one “official” population of beavers, on the river Otter, in Devon, where escapees were given permission to stay.

It is not known whether the two escapees have remained together.