Clare McVerry, 41, saw the statue of Shiva on a holiday to India with partner Tony Clarke. A week later she was pregnant with son Mitchell. Doctors say it is a miracle.

Miss McVerry had breast cancer in her 30s and needed chemotherapy which doctors said had left her infertile. And she has a weak spine after a car crash in her 20s, so medics said it was impossible for her to carry a child.

Miss McVerry, of Sutton Coldfield, said: "After I saw Shiva I was filled with a powerful feeling. I bought a model statue for my mantelpiece. When Mitchell grows up I will tell him how special the statue turned out to be."

Consultant Dr Simon Bowman said: "He really is a miracle baby. But we can't prescribe visiting a fertility god on the NHS."

Gods help us if Shiva teams up with the Catholics!

Some of the older fertility icons...

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