Ben Fordham is asking the question: Is it rude to ask someone to clean up their yard?

A hilarious interaction between two neighbours has gone viral, sparking the debate.

It all started when mother-of-two Ellen found a mystery note on her letterbox.

“Dear house occupant, could you please tidy up you’re (sic) property. It looks a mess. Thank you,” it said.

The request didn’t bode well with Ellen, who told Kidspot she was furious when she saw it.

She took to her computer and typed up a response.

“Dear Gutless Neighbour,” she wrote.

“If you’d like to come and watch our two children or work my husband’s 50 hours a week for him, we’d gladly spend more time in our yard.

“Alternatively, you can f**k off.”

The hilarious interaction has Ben thinking about a neighbour he remembers growing up.

The man’s lawn was always a mess, with grass growing to knee-length.

When Ben and his brother started a lawnmowing business as kids, they tried and tried to interest the messy neighbour.

Flyers in the mailbox, knocking on his door. They did everything they could, but got nothing.

“Eventually Dad said, ‘Look just go and do it anyway,'” says Ben.

“When he wasn’t home one day we fired up the lawnmower and we went and mowed his lawn.”

Click PLAY below for the full story