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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Helen Le Caplain & Zahna Eklund

Woman in stitches after finding face of wizard Gandalf hidden in her floorboards

A holiday let owner has claimed to have found the face of Gandalf the Grey hidden in the floorboards of the cottage she rents out to the public - and now challenges guests to find the secret feature.

Isobel Haldane first noticed the quirky floorboard when she was sent a picture of the Lord of the Rings character lurking in the living room floor of her holiday let, The Roundhouse Cottage, by her nieces.

The floorboard seems to show a lookalike of J. R. R. Tolkien's wizarding legend - who was played by Sir Ian McKellen in the epic fantasy film trilogy, as well as the Hobbit prequels - with a clearly-defined head, eyes, nose, mouth, long beard and flowing locks topped off with a pointy hat.

And after discovering the unique feature in her property, 60-year-old Isobel now uses it as a fun quest that she sets for visitors to find during their stay at the cottage - with one stag party even vowing to return because they failed to find him.

Isobel thinks the quirky floorboard is 'amazing' (Kennedy News and Media)
The wood looks like Lord of the Rings star Gandalf (Kennedy News and Media)

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Isobel, from Blackford, Perthshire, said: "It's very special having one of the greatest wizards from literary history living in our sitting room, we feel very privileged.

"His striking features are reflected in the wood - two definite eyes, a prominent nose and the flowing hair and the beard.

"The beard is just amazing. What's even more amazing is the people we brought the property from hadn't noticed it. I think it was maybe covered up by a rug.

"He is a wee bit tricky to find but it's a good challenge. If you look at him upside down you can't see him, it's only when you're facing him that you can see him."

And even Isobel was none the wiser for some time, as she said it was her nieces Jane Hamilton and Annie Smart who actually found Gandalf in the floorboards for the first time three years ago.

Isobel's nieces Jane and Annie found Gandalf first (Kennedy News and Media)

The mum-of-three, who has had the holiday let for six years, added: "Jane and Annie discovered it, we didn't even know it was there. Jane said to me 'do you know you've got Gandalf living here?' We didn't even know it was there.

"We took a photograph and laminated it and made it as a puzzle for children to find who are staying there. I thought it was interesting and something to keep them occupied.

"When parents arrive on holiday and get into the house the children are itching to go off and look for Gandalf while they unpack. Some people ask for a hint so I tell people to text me if they'd like a clue.

"It's funny, some people are so excited. We had a stag party of six young men staying and they didn't want me to tell them where it was because they wanted to come back.

"They were gamers and wanted the challenge, they didn't want to be told. They didn't find him so they're going to book again and come back and have another look."

And Isobel's niece Jane, 44, has said finding Gandalf in her aunt's floorboards has now made her start seeing the finer details in all sorts of places.

The NHS Phlebotomist, from Alva, Clackmannanshire, said: "My sister Annie and I were staying up there for a couple of days when she spotted Gandalf lurking in the floor of the living room of the roundhouse.

"My aunt Isobel now challenges all new guests to see if they can find him during their visit.

"I was super surprised and delighted when Annie pointed out that Gandalf’s very distinctive face was peering back at us from the floorboards that day.

"I've started seeing faces everywhere since then but none are as impressive as Gandalf."

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