Balloon from the Stag Hotel Christmas lights switch-on in Lyndhurst is found in France

A PUZZLED French family emailed the landlords of a New Forest pub after discovering a branded balloon that had escaped a Christmas lights celebration and made its way over the English Channel.

Steve and Maria Harris of The Stag Hotel, in Lyndhurst, said staff had given away around 500 balloons, bearing the pub’s details, to children attending the Christmas lights switch-on in the village last month.

But the very next evening they were surprised to receive a message from the Hayault family from Mortagne sur Sévre, in western France, to say they had found one in their garden.

The email, written in French, translated to read: “Hello! We found a balloon from your hotel near our house.

“We did not find a word at the end of the tie but maybe was it a release of balloons?

“Did this balloon cross the Channel?”

Maria told the A&T: “We were absolutely amazed and thought it was a lovely gesture that the family Hayault took time to send us an email.

“They asked if it was an intentional release as there was no message on the balloon and we replied to explain it was not.

“The solo balloon travelled some 362 miles across the channel and was discovered just over 24 hours after we gave them out. We are assuming it got there thanks to the power of Storm Arwen.”

Hundreds braved the cold to turn out for the switch-on at 6pm on 27th November led by the special guest, Paralympian Aaron Phipps.