A worker on a scenic railway used in the Harry Potter films has been reunited with a £10 note weeks after losing it – thanks to a seagull.
Florence Mclean, 65, had boarded the Jacobite steam locomotive, which runs on the West Highland Line where the iconic Hogwarts Express scene was filmed. She realised the note had blown out of her pocket after the train left Mallaig for Fort William.
She asked a ticket office worker to look for the missing money, but a phone call confirmed it had not been found. Mclean, who has worked on the steam railway for 31 years, searched the station later that day without success.
Unexpected delivery
Two weeks later, Mclean returned to Mallaig and spotted a seagull flying overhead carrying the £10 note. She described the incident as 'the most unusual thing that has ever happened to me'.
She said: 'I had been standing with a couple of other workers when one suddenly pointed and said, “Look! There’s a seagull flying over with your £10!” Don’t get me wrong, there are some silly things that have happened over the years – but this was bizarre!'
Mclean added: 'The fact that it flew over there, when I am only in Mallaig for a couple of hours a day at lunchtime, and I’d only been standing there for five or ten minutes… I think it’s absolutely hilarious.'
Background of the Jacobite
The Jacobite has operated on the West Highland Line under various guises since the 1980s. The 41-mile route served as the backdrop for Harry's journey to Hogwarts in 2001. The original maroon steam train used in the films has since been moved to the Warner Bros Studio tour at Leavesden Studios.
