A Celtic football top, once belonging to fan Kevin Hill and featuring his hero Ian Wright's name, has been returned after a quarter-century-long prank. The jersey, which Kevin received before Wright's number 17 was known, went missing in 2001 from a flat-warming party in Edinburgh.
Years later, Kevin began receiving mysterious emails containing photos of his top being held by strangers in various global locations, including the London Eye, Barcelona, Turkey, Italy, and South America. The emails, which started in 2008 and continued until 2009, left Kevin confused about the identity of the prankster and how the strip travelled so widely.
The mystery was finally solved at Kevin's wedding reception in late August when childhood friend Kris Robertson presented him with the top and a photobook titled "Wrighty on Tour: 25 years of adventures around the globe." Robertson revealed he orchestrated the prank as revenge after Kevin had previously hijacked his emails. The idea was inspired by the 2001 film Amelie, where a garden gnome is sent around the world.
Robertson enlisted another friend to steal the strip and then asked random people in different locations to pose with it for photographs. His parents also helped build a collection of photos from the UK and Europe. He described the moment of revelation at the wedding as a relief after years of deception.