BRITAIN’S oldest tiger, who featured in the iconic Esso fuel adverts, has passed away at the age of 22.

    Tango was made famous when he was one of seven tigers who featured in Esso’s “put a tiger in your tank” adverts in the 1990s.

    Since 2014 he has been living at Woodside Wildlife Park in Lincolnshire where he peacefully passed away Saturday.

    Neil Mumby, owner and founder of Woodside Wildlife Park in Lincolnshire, said, “He [Tango] was just old.

    “We had a meeting with the head keeper, the vet and myself and we decided that his quality of life had deteriorated and we had to have him unfortunately put to sleep on Saturday morning.

    “He had got to the stage where his arthritis meant he couldn’t walk and he couldn’t move about ... He was wonderful. He was a favorite of all of the keepers, he was extremely gentle and he was just a gentleman.

    “The visitors and the keepers at the park are all quite upset but on the other hand we are all quite pleased and proud to have given him the retirement he deserved.”

    After the adverts ended Tango was sold to a German circus, which mistreated him.

    He and his partner Julia, 8, were due to be put down in Belgium until the wildlife park raised £250,000 (US$332,870) and brought them to the U.K. in 2014.(SD-Agencies)