IT was a case of "sofa so good" as the precarious task of moving a settee took on a watery twist in Farnhill.

Removals men were left scratching their heads when an expensive piece of furniture was simply too big to fit down the stairs at a canal-side residence.

Enter barge owners Bill and Judy York and Peter and Ann Holden who offered to float the furniture down the canal and bring it in through balcony doors.

And it was all hands on deck as the boat cruised down the Leeds/Liverpool canal, picked up the sofa and manoeuvred in front of the window.

Luckily, with a bit of heave-ho, the furniture reached its intended destination without so much as a splash of water.

Delighted home owner Paula Chapel, who has just moved to the area with husband Iain and nine-month-old daughter Ava, said it was Snaygill Boats who had suggested the Yorks.

But their engine was in pieces so they called on friends to help.

"The sofa got stuck and would not go down the stairs," said Paula.

"I thought I'd give this a try, because I would either have to risk it falling in the canal or not have the sofa at all."

Richard Autiero, of Bradford-based firm Move-It said: "I saw someone do the same thing in Venice."

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