My father-in-law Ant and his son Rowley were both bitten by *something* one night this week. Originally being from Zimbabwe, they recognised the bite as being that of a spider and thought little of it. What they didn't realise is that biting spiders are - certainly to my knowledge - highly unusual in Essex, UK. The bites began as a rash and then developed into a horrible suppurating wheal. Here's the video evidence. I promise this is genuine. We've not pinpointed a specific culprit, although this news story may offer some clues: news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7573530.stm