I’M UNDER
PRESSURE 5
A SCOT who has been playing in an international game of tag with his pals was stunned when one of them flew thousands of miles across the Atlantic just to tell him: “You’re it!”
Drew McEwan was at his niece’s christening at Loch Lomond when Georgina Wilkinson pulled the prank after making a 4000-mile trip from North Carolina that morning.
The pair – and eight others – have been playing the game since 2014 when they all met by chance in China.
Georgina had arranged to get one over on Drew with the help of his brother and sister and kept it under wraps.
And while the family pictures were being taken after the christening, the photographer, who was in on the joke, asked Drew if he could tell the gardener working in the background to move.
But the 31-year-old was left stunned when “gardener” Georgina stood up, tagged him and then ran away – to catch her eight-hour flight back home that afternoon.
Digital consultant Drew said: “My brother and sister had been planning it for months with Georgina behind my back. They even picked her up at the airport. DREW will need to come up with a belter of a plan to top Georgina’s effort.
The group of 10 – from as far afield as Australia, the US, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Scotland – met in 2014 when they were stranded in China because of the Icelandic volcano eruption.
They kept in touch and go on holiday every year.
Drew said: “The game of tag started when one of the friends went to Georgina’s office. He tagged her, told her she was it and walked out.
“You can only tag someone in June or December and if you fail to do it – you can’t go on the next group holiday.
“Nobody’s failed yet so I’m under a lot of pressure to come up with something big.”
“I’ve never felt so betrayed by my own flesh and blood.”
Drew, originally from Newton Stewart, Wigtownshire, added: “I didn’t even get a chance to talk to Georgina. You have to just tag and run, you can’t stay and chat.
“I was in shock that she’d put so much effort into it. Flying over from America and back in one day is unbelievable. It’s my turn to tag one of the group now.
“Georgina’s raised the bar for me BY JACKIE GRANT but I must admit it was brilliantly executed.
“It was captured on video and you can see how surprised I was when I realised the gardener was Georgina.
“To top Georgina’s tag, my one will need to be captured on video, I’ll need to have a great costume and it will need to involve international travel.
“I’m not telling a soul what I’m planning. I’ll need to keep it as much of a surprise as Georgina did with me.”
Drew’s sister Angela enjoyed helping Georgina for last Friday’s prank. She said: “It was the most fun to plan. I’m so glad we got to be part of this infamous game of international tag.”
Georgina thanked Angela for “allowing me to ruin a cherished family occasion”. She added: “Sorry, Drewbs, you are now it’.”
The game has echoes of new film Tag, starring Jon Hamm.
The movie, out on Friday, tells the true story of a group in the US who have spent 25 years setting up stings and donning disguises just for the thrill of saying: “You’re it.”