“When the stuffed body of Alfred, a 7ft gorilla, disappeared from Bristol Museum in March 1956 it sparked one of the more unusual police investigations.
Alfred had been one of the prize attractions at Bristol Zoo during his 18 years in captivity. Such was his appeal that after his death in 1946 he was stuffed and mounted in a glass case at the museum.
Police appealed for information, scoured the local university campus and interviewed leaders of the student union in an attempt to find him, but to no avail. They suspected he may have been stolen by rival students.
For nearly three days there was no sign of Alfred, until Donald Boulton, the university caretaker, found him in a doctor’s waiting room.
But the mystery of who took Alfred and where he went has remained a mystery for more than 50 years.
Now, after the death of one of the culprits, Ron Morgan, 79, a former estate agent in Bristol, the secret behind the `escape’ from the museum has been revealed.”
Read more at The Telegraph (thanks, Tammy)
which one is the gorilla…?
Zombie gorilla?
This is a brilliant story, thanks for sharing it!
P.s. ‘Rag week jape’? LOL. I might start using that…
p-a-p-a aaah?
and there wasme thinking thatt Derren used him in evening of wonders!
Perhaps the gorilla took a trip to Mars? Oh wait, perhaps not! … http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6q3J66nrBU
Awesome!! But must of been pretty hard to smuggle out a 7ft gorilla
Derren, saw your enigma show last night, it was AMAZING!!!! would definatley recommend it the whole show was stunning, well done Derren and to alll of the crew behind it.
x
It must be something in Bristol that triggers that in students ..
That gorilla .. the way he looks at the student on his right .. secret affair I guess ..not according to the gorilla but the student ..
And equally puzzling: what the heck was Sean Penn doing in Bristol in 1956?
Actually – what the heck was Sean Penn doing in Bristol in 1956, with STEPHEN FRY and JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE? That’s uncanny.
I got a bad feeling about this.
haha! so funny! good old students! wonder if DB got up to similar antics at uni…i imagine he did!
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@ Codifier Oh yeah, I can see that! But what’s Stephen Fry doing at Bristol Uni? I thought he went to Cambridge?