Oh and I found this guy in the garage a couple of days ago...I thought of posting a "name that spider" thread just to be silly...

Lancashire - are you serious?

Beautiful spider the redback but by god they hurt when they bite.

IntroductionsMedia in Japan have reported the discovery of Redback spiders in Osaka, Japan within a hundred kilometres of Kansai International Airport. It was speculated that they arrived in Japan by "hitching" a ride on the outside of airliners, or carried in cargoes of wood chips.[13] In 2008, Redback spiders were found in Fukuoka, Japan. Over 700 have been found near the container terminal in Hakata Bay, Fukuoka city.[citation needed] Warning signs about Redback spiders have been posted in parks around the city as Japan has had no dangerous venomous spiders before now.[citation needed] This has led to confusion in Japan since the native spider Latrodectus elegans is also commonly known as the redback spider.

Redback spiders are also found in small colonies in areas of New Zealand. These spiders were imported on Australian hardwood poles used for electric power and telephone.[citation needed] They are found around Central Otago in the South Island and New Plymouth in the North Island.[14]

Tourist Guides in UAE warn visitors of Redback spiders.[15]

Redback Spiders have been found in the UK after a container of parts from Austraila arrived in Preston, Lancashire; some may have escaped into the countryside before pest controllers could destroy them. [16]

Innit typical!
All the stringent checking of our container and at the airports and having a pair of shoes thoroughly decontaminated of uk soil.The Australian customs and quarantine seem to be quite ok with letting the rest of the world have their wildlife and fauna.

this post is putting me off Oz.........please tell me these are extreme cases...........Ive never once seen a snake or a spider on ramsey street

We've had a Bandy Bandy snake in the house - that was a beautiful snake - and one night found one similar to a red bellied black in the hall by the bedrooms which was a bit freaky. Last year found a brown snake skin in one room we don't use a lot - never found the snake that grew out of it though Can't think how they get in. We're getting quite a collection of snake skins from around the place outside.
Don't seem to get redbacks at our place - maybe the monster huntsmen eat them all The huntsmen here seem to get bigger every year. I got bitten by one on the hand last summer - it was in my towel unbeknown to me when I got out of the shower - it hurt at the time but that was all - I think it hurt me psychologically more than anything - still shiver to think I was bitten by one of those beasts

These are extreme cases!

might start looking into new zealand or canada

It's not that bad, for the first week paranoia may set in that everything that tickles your skin in the night is a deadly spider but this soon subsides as you realise that they aren't everywhere and indeed the reason we take these photos is because it is unusual, just get yer house sprayed once to two times a year and you will never see any.