By George! Where’s Colin gone?

Department left speechless after disappearance of life-sized cardboard Colin Firth

They say every girl dreams of finding their own Mr. Darcy, but, judging by recent events, someone may have taken matters into their own hands. A life-sized cardboard cutout of Colin Firth was recently stolen from the foyer of the King George VI building – and there’s a reward for anyone who can return it.

The cutout, dressed as King George VI from award-winning film The King’s Speech, was originally part of a display promoting a campaign to raise awareness for speech and language disabilities.

However, on December 13 the cutout was taken in broad daylight. No CCTV footage was captured of the thief, who may have been aided by the cutout’s conveniently transportable folding ability.

“I’m surprised it lasted so long,” said Dr Helen Stringer, lecturer and director of Newcastle University Children’s Speech and Language Therapy Clinic. “We felt it was really appropriate, considering he was King George VI.”

The cutout was donated by an NHS Trust in the South of Tyne, and had been on display since the University’s Open Day on September 29. In its place is now a poster asking, “Where is Colin?”

There have been several rumoured sightings of Colin since his disappearance, although a widely-circulated photo taken of the cutout on the Metro is likely to have been a forgery.

As a message to the person(s) responsible, Dr Stringer said: “We’d like him back, and there will be no recriminations – I did hope someone would slip him back into one of the rooms.

“We hope he had a nice Christmas wherever he was, and that he wasn’t left on his own somewhere. There were a lot of women interested in keeping him company over the winter.”

For anyone who can provide information leading to Colin’s return, The Courier is offering a breakfast for four in Frankie and Benny’s John Dobson Street Branch. No questions will be asked.

NB: The Courier does not condone theft in any form or under any circumstances.