The Disappearance of Gandalf the Goose
In a small village near Basted Millpond in Kent, a mysterious event has sparked widespread concern and sadness. The incident involves the alleged theft of Gandalf, a beloved goose who had become a local icon. People are now asking, "What has happened to Gandalf the goose?"
The story began when a passerby claimed to have seen someone placing the bird into the boot of a car around 7 p.m. last Tuesday. Since then, there have been no clues about his whereabouts, leading the local landlord to offer a £400 reward for information that could help catch the culprit.
Benjamin Mcconnachie, the publican at The Plough in Basted, Kent, expressed his deep concern over the situation. He mentioned that the geese were a significant attraction for the community, drawing visitors from nearby villages like Borough Green, Platt, and Crouch. “Everyone loves those geese,” he said. “People come from far and wide to visit them and bring their children.”
This is an unusual event for the area, which has always been known for its friendly and welcoming community. Benjamin described the thief as “the scum of the earth” and emphasized the need to find the person responsible.
A Unique Story of Friendship
Gandalf’s arrival at Basted Millpond two years ago was a mystery. It is believed that he was released by someone who could no longer care for him. Initially, he lived with a family of wild greylag geese, but when they flew off, he was left alone. As a sociable creature, Gandalf seemed to be suffering, moping around and looking miserable.
To help him, a local couple decided to buy him a companion. They traveled to Norwich to purchase Ryan, named after Ryan Gosling. The pair became inseparable until Gandalf's disappearance.
A driver who stopped in a lay-by in Basted Lane witnessed the incident and reported it to villager Nigel Sheepwash. According to Nigel, he had left to collect his wife from the train station at 6:50 p.m. and saw both geese in their usual spot. However, when he returned at 7:20 p.m., one was missing, and he raised the alarm.
A Community in Distress
Nigel began searching for Gandalf and contacted the neighbors who looked after the geese to see if they had removed one. They then called the police. He admitted that he did not take the driver's contact details, which he now regrets. The driver mentioned seeing something fly out of the passenger window and a passenger getting out, but he couldn’t confirm if it was a man or a woman.
Benjamin noted that a car had raced past his pub at high speed that evening. “He was doing 70 or 80 mph, which brought my attention to it,” he said. He checked the pub’s CCTV and found an image of a dark-colored estate car speeding past at 7:01 p.m.
Social Media Reaction
The incident has caused a wave of sadness and anger on social media, where villagers have taken it upon themselves to track down the thieves. Many have shared the CCTV image of the car on Facebook pages of neighboring villages in hopes of identifying the culprits.
Julie Dervish, one of the concerned villagers, said, “We’re all very upset. I’m in my 50s now and live in Platt, but when my children were young, we used to visit Basted Mill all the time to see the wildlife.” She added that the location is not easily accessible, suggesting the thieves must have planned the theft.
The couple who bought Ryan for Gandalf are worried that Ryan might also suffer from loneliness. On Thursday, they traveled to Bournemouth and got another goose, who has now been released at Basted Mill. His name is Gengoose Khan.
A Call for Justice
The couple, who prefer to remain anonymous, expressed their disappointment and frustration. “If a driver had hit a goose and killed it, stopped, and done the right thing, we would have been sad, but not angry. But any deliberate act of violence against wildlife, as this seems to have been, is just deplorable.”
Kent Police are currently investigating the case. Basted Mill, once a paper mill dating back to 1750, was demolished in 1999 and later redeveloped into 29 houses by Crest housebuilders.
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