A television rerun of a beloved British comedy helped solve a real-life theft of Napoleon treasures.
An episode of Lovejoy, a BBC comedy aired between 1986 to 1994, has aided in uncovering the mystery behind a brazen theft of princess Napoleonic artefacts from a Hampshire abbey.
Two altar plaques stolen more than ten years ago from the crypt of Emperor Napoleon III have now been recovered after an antiques dealer recognised their design while watching an episode of the show.
The breakthrough came when Paul Gostelow, a Derbyshire-based antiques dealer, noticed a familiar Napoleonic motif while rewatching a 30-year-old episode of the programme starring Ian McShane.
The episode, titled The Napoleonic Commode, features the fictional dealer identifying valuable artefacts from the era of the French empire.
Mr Gostelow later realised the prayer frames in his possession closely matched items reported stolen from St Michael’s Abbey in Farnborough, Hampshire.
After researching their history, he contacted police, triggering a formal investigation into their origins.
Experts, including specialists from the International Stolen Arts Register, later confirmed the plaques were among three items stolen from the abbey’s crypt more than a decade ago, The Times reports.
The missing artefacts in question were originally from St Michael’s Abbey in Farnborough
|
GETTY
Officers from Hampshire Constabulary travelled to Derbyshire to recover the artefacts, which have since been returned to the abbey for restoration.
The operation was overseen by heritage crime specialist PC Mark Webb, who described the recovery as a significant step in preserving Britain’s shared European history.
A police spokesman said: “Officers from the task force last week travelled to Derbyshire to recover the items, and PC Webb was able to return them to St Michael’s Abbey, in Farnborough, for restoration and return to their place in the crypt.”
Police say inquiries are ongoing to locate the third plaque, which remains missing.
Ian McShane played Lovejoy in the beloved comedy
|
GETTY
St Michael’s Abbey holds the remains of Napoleon III, who died in exile in England in 1873 after being deposed as France’s last emperor.
He was the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, the military leader who rose to power during the French Revolution and ruled much of Europe in the early 19th century.
Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor of the French in 1804 and dominated continental politics through a series of military campaigns before his final defeat at Waterloo in 1815.
Napoleon III fled to Britain after France’s defeat in the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 and spent his final years in Hampshire.
His widow, Empress Eugénie, later founded St Michael’s Abbey as a mausoleum, where she and their son are also buried.
The abbey remains an active Benedictine monastery and continues to house the imperial tombs.
The recovery has also shone a spotlight on Lovejoy, a series that first aired on BBC on January 10, 1986.
Based on novels by John Grant, written under the pen name Jonathan Gash, the show followed the adventures of an antiques dealer with an uncanny ability to detect genuine treasures.
Set largely in East Anglia and filmed around Long Melford, Lovejoy was known for blending mystery, humour and real-world antiques knowledge.
The central character, Lovejoy, was described as a “divvy” within the trade and someone with an almost supernatural eye for authenticity.
Across six series and 71 episodes, the programme built a loyal following and remains a fixture of British television nostalgia.
Officers hope the renewed attention may yet lead to the recovery of the final missing plaque and close the chapter on a theft that has lingered unresolved for years.