Preston used to be the UK port for the Geest banana boats from the Windward Islands, and the Banana King still has a stall on the market. Reports of large spiders were quite common.

Daily Mail 21 September 2016 A family have been forced to flee their home after dozens of the world's deadliest spiders burst out of a bunch of Asda bananas and crawled over their kitchen floor.

Mother-of-two Sophie Newcombe, 26, dropped the fruit in fright and both Sophie and her partner, Ashley Gamble, watched in horror as the Brazilian wandering spiders escaped in all directions through their Leicester home.

Wikipedia; Except in cases of anaphylaxis (severe allergic reaction), no species of tarantula are dangerous to humans, and some species have become popular in the exotic pet trade.

The Guardian 23 November 2016 The Conservative chief whip has declined to remove a tarantula called Cronus from his office despite a House of Commons ban on pets.