Rupert can run, but he can’t hide

One of the best things about being part of this blog’s community is watching how people put their heads together to solve seemingly impossible problems. Contrary to what the Hoaxtead mob think, this blog isn’t just the product of a single pen; rather, we are a community of people, each with our own specialities and interests, who share a common belief: that this hoax has damaged far too many lives already, and that it must be stopped.

Case in point: the other day it became clear that Rupert Quaintance had indeed landed in the UK. He announced this by making a video in someone’s back garden, and within minutes, our commenters were all over the video, looking for clues as to where it had been made.

The logo on a bin glimpsed in the video gave away the general area: Rupert was somewhere in Bexley. And a church spire in the background provided another clue:

…and the chase was on! At first the church spire looked as though it might belong to Bexley Reformed United Church; but that hypothesis was quickly discarded (because it didn’t match the evidence available—take note, Hoaxtead mob members who read this blog):

Armed with new information, the team set off like a pack of bloodhounds. Using Google Earth and known landmarks, they started off a bit shakily…

…but quickly started to find their feet:

Joe pointed out that the orientation of the house in question could be worked out with a bit of technical know-how:

Fairly Sane showed that a bit of knowledge of architectural history never hurt anyone:

Joe pointed out an important element of the spire, not immediately visible from the video but easily seen once it was enlarged:

And persistence is an important factor in tracking down the right answer:

FS consulted with some of his architectural historian friends, and together they arrived at an answer:

Once EC had the address in hand, the police and UKBA were duly informed. Shortly after we received FS’s email, another comment appeared, in which Rupert’s address was posted.

Bingo! It was all over but the shouting:

Once the address had been tracked down, it seemed that the person living in the house was less than enthusiastic about having his house identified publicly. He began asking Rupert to take his address off his Facebook page:

We sympathise, we really do…after all, none of the innocent Hampstead families asked to have their addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, children’s names and alleged ‘sexual preferences’, plus their work details and personal information, spread all over the internet either.

We’re sure Rupert must have reminded him of this when he began complaining.Point well taken, Tracey. There’s absolutely no reason to drag anyone’s elderly relatives into this thing. Just because Adam had the poor judgement to invite Rupert to stay with him doesn’t mean his grandparents ought to be made to suffer.

In any case, it seems that Rupert didn’t stay long at Mr Cheriton’s home.

His latest selfie shows him getting chummy with (and being dwarfed by) Charlie Veitch, who most decidedly does not live in or near London:

(By the way, we think we’ve discovered yet another characteristic that Rupert shares with Abe Christie….)