A faulty boiler at the Marsa power station has become the butt of many a joke after Monday's four-hour electricity blackout, the third major power cut in eight months.

"Boiler Number 7", as it is being called, even has its own Facebook page, where over 500 people are calling for its speedy recovery.

The jokes began when a commentator on timesofmalta.com, Marius Zulgis, wrote: "We must be the only population in the world who is on first-name terms with its power station boilers."

But the humour has had a viral effect and many Facebook users are now poking fun at the power cut on the boiler's fan page.

The boiler itself has also made some contributions by asking whether Ira Losco's old Eurovision song Seventh Wonder was about it and boasting that it had a great time "tripping" on Monday.

In another contribution, Boiler No. 7 warns that it won't be fuming white smoke when the Pope visits.

And Boiler No. 7 yesterday sat for a photo session with a photographer of The Times, courtesy Enemalta Corporation.