Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Riddle of the message in a bottle tossed into sea by Ulster boy 21yrs ago
Walker wants to track down letter’s writer
A MESSAGE in a bottle thrown into the sea by a Belfast schoolboy 21 years ago has been found this week by an extreme walker in Scotland.
Christian Lewis was making his way through the Mull of Galloway to Portpatrick when he spotted the bottle washed up on a cliffside.
After a scramble to reach it, he took it to his resting spot with pals and over a glass of wine, opened the treasure.
Inside was a letter written by 13-yearold Martin George from East Belfast.
Christian, 37, had a video taken of himself opening the little lemonade bottle and pulling out the faded message.
Written in blue biro on a sheet of A4 paper, Martin said: “Hello Bottle Finder,
“I am Martin George and I am 13 years old. I’m in Northern Ireland and I have a brother Christopher. He is 10. And I have a sister, Patricia. She is 17.
“I have lots of hobbies which include football, reading and bird watching and I like listening to rave and pop music. My friends and I go to our local rave disco once a month and we have good craic there and we meet lots of new people.
“My favourite football team is Manchester United. I have a pet dog. She is a German Shepherd and her name is Maxie.
“This is not my first message in a bottle as I call it. I’ve sent lots out there before. Are you a boy? Are you a girl? What age are you? Where are you from?
“I am very curious about your hobbies and hope that you decide to write back and I will be very happy to hear from you.
“A thing that I have not mentioned is that I am a member of the RSPB – that stands for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
“I have six mates, Danny – Dan, Rylan – Sanji, Paul Scally, Smicker, Patrick Paddy, Connor – Conker and Kieran. “I hope you write back. “Your friend, “Martin George, “Vulcan Gardeens.” Christian was just 17 and living in Reading, England, when Martin threw the bottle into the sea.
He told the Mirror: “I’ve been walking through pretty harsh conditions recently and meeting up with friends along the way which has kept me going.
“But to find this bottle and to read the lovely letter has just made this journey much more worthwhile.
“The little lad who wrote that was only a few years younger than me when he put pen to paper and we were possibly living very different lives.”
Christian was living in Reading, Berkshire, and
Martin was living in Belfast and wrote the letter on March, 3, 1997. He said: “The innocence of his words in that childish handwriting is heartwarming.
“The peculiar thing is he mentions being a bird watcher and a member of the RSPB and his bottle washed up in Scotland and was found right here in the Mull of Galloway which is a bird protection sanctuary.
“I’d love to meet Martin and see how his life has been. I think he sounds like a great young man and I feel he’ll have grown into a decent adult with a curious mind and a kind heart. After all he loves birds and dogs and his football.
“If anyone knows Martin, please contact the Mirror so we can be put in touch.”