SEE IT: Humpback whale gives divers huge surprise at sea

By Chantal Weller and Pol Allingham via SWNS

A humpback whale gave a group of divers a massive surprise when it popped up next to their boat in the English Channel.

Diver Thomas Packman filmed it as it rolled over and over next to their boat, splashing its tail into the water.

Thomas, 26, and his colleagues from Mutiny Divers spotted the beast after exploring a shipwreck in the English Channel between Dover and Folkestone.

Thomas said in 13 years of diving he has never seen anything like it in English waters, his colleague said he’d not seen one that close in 30 years of diving.

He said: "It was absolutely mesmerizing.

"We were on our way back from a dive in Folkestone and about a mile away we saw a massive splash.

"We had thought it might be something like a whale or a dolphin because we had seen one about a month ago.

"We got closer and sure enough, it was this massive tail sticking a few meters up in the air and continuously splashing on the water.

"It was rolling around on the surface and just looked like it was having a good time really.

"It came right up next to the boat and rolled over. It was slashing its tail on the water for a good five or 10 minutes.

"It was an incredible experience, it really was amazing to see it.

"We were quite shocked as we thought the sound of the boat would scare it away. It was almost in touching distance of the boat and then began rolling around.

"You could see the whole length of it and see the white of it underneath when it rolled over and the dark grey on top. We were really surprised it hung around for as long as it did really.

"It was massive. I have been told it is quite rare to see one around here."

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In another rare sighting, a marine survey team saw a humpback in the Channel in 2015.

Other whale breeds are more commonly sighted in waters off the Kent coast, including beloved Benny the Beluga who became a local celebrity as he splashed near Gravesend in 2018.

In December a Minke whale was also seen in a Dover harbor.

Thomas continued: "The chap I work with has been diving out here for 30 years and he has been all around the world and he has never seen one let alone that close.

"It was a really amazing experience for all of us.

"At first we wondered if it was stuck in a net or something, but then it started rolling over so we knew it was not.

"One reason they do it is as a sign of aggression but we dismissed that as we saw it doing it a mile away from us before we even got there.

"They can also do it when hunting to get the fish closer together but we think it was doing it to communicate with other whales.

"The sound of the slamming of the tail on the surface travels very long distances and they believe it is a way of communicating over long distances."

Humpback whales can weigh up to 40 tons, reach up to 18 meters in length and live for 90 years.