Man behind mystery 1966 Jersey James Bond note revealed

The daughters of E A Blampied, Annelis Michel and Debbie Blampied with his grandson Matthew

The identity of the person behind a James Bond note written in 1966 has been revealed.

Jersey Heritage found the note hidden in a glass bottle buried in concrete in a fireplace whilst working on the restoration of Elizabeth Castle.

The daughters of E A Blampied, Annelis Michel and Debbie Blampied, have confirmed it was their father Edward who wrote the note.

Mr Blampied was a "big fan of James Bond", the family said.

Jersey Heritage said the writer was "clearly a very big James Bond fan"

Ms Blampied said: "He loved all the films, I think he thought he was James Bond - loved diving, anything that was adrenaline seeking, that was my dad."

They said their father would get them to write notes in bottles and throw them into the sea in the hope they would get a reply.

Mr Blampied was working as a carpenter at the Jersey castle, and constructed the stairways in the officers' quarters during the time the letter was hidden.

The daughters said their father would get them to write notes in bottles and throw them into the sea in the hope that they would get a reply

To confirm it was definitely their father, the family searched through old letters to decipher the handwriting.

Ms Blampied said: "The whole family got together, and Annelis went up into the loft, brought down a suitcase.

"We were looking through old photos, we found letters - love letters from my dad to my mum.

"We just knew then - the lettering, the 'th with the little mark underneath of it."

Edward Blampied was working as a carpenter at the Jersey castle, and constructed the stairways in the officers' quarters during the time the letter was hidden

Harvey Doolan, Jersey Heritage's historic buildings officer, said he was "convinced" their father was the writer of the note.

He said: "Having spoken at length with them about their father and his life, and checked the note against examples of Edward's handwriting, we're sure he was the author.

"He used a very distinctive 'th' after the date, which is present on the note and on another letter he wrote that they showed us."

'Paths have crossed'

Mr Doolan said further notes from Mr Blampied could potentially be found at Jersey's Mont Orgueil Castle - where he was employed for renovation during the 1960s.

He added that in "a remarkable coincidence", Mr Blampied's grandson Matthew was currently working as a junior project manager on a restoration project at Elizabeth Castle.

Matthew said: "I just think it's absolutely amazing that our paths have crossed in this moment in time, and that the note has been discovered when I've been working at Elizabeth Castle.

"I just can't believe it."