I’ve been standing in a soggy field in Bristol for two hours and I’m starting to lose hope. I try to smile optimistically at the woman beside me, but she’s staring ahead at the metal detectorists slowly sweeping the ground like crime scene inspectors. Suddenly there’s a screech. A man drops to his knees and digs into the mud. Is this the moment we’ve all been waiting for?
In 2013, Morley Howard launched one of Britain’s biggest metal detecting communities, with a twist. Its members don’t focus on ancient treasure; instead they look for the lost belongings of living people. There’s a chance they’re in your neighbourhood, wading through weeds and plunging into ponds for missing jewellery. They’re an altruistic service just waiting for your call, formed as a result of one chance purchase 15 years ago.
