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Entering the largest lost property warehouse in Europe feels a bit like heading into a theme park maze – except instead of hedges, there are rows of metal shelves about 10ft high and full of, well, everything.

It’s vast, very grey, rather cold and, in truth, a little bit dull on the surface. Perhaps its operators had this in mind when they decided to fill the first section as you walk in with stuffed toys.

It sort of does the trick at brightening up the place, until you think about the children who are missing them.

Toys left behind on TfL's services
A bird's eye view of the office - one room of two

With around 200,000 items turning up every year – roughly 6,000 every week – it’s organised chaos at Transport for London’s (TfL) lost property office in West Ham, east London.

As you walk around the warehouse you see the seemingly endless shelves filled with backpacks, handbags, phones, umbrellas, skateboards, scooters, buggies, footballs – you name it.

It’s brimming with London life, but it’s all lost. And with just three months to claim what’s theirs, if owners aren’t quick they may run out of time.

Still, there’s fun to be had here. The staff showing me around have a spring in their step as they tell me about the painstaking amount of work that goes into logging and sorting up to 1,100 new items per day.

“There’s a real surprise factor. Every day is different,” says Diana Quaye, the lost property office’s manager. “The other day we had a bollard come in from the Tube… I was questioning that, but we’ve been assured that it was definitely from the Tube!”

A taxidermised fox. Who would ever want to leave this lovely fella behind?
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Who would ever want to leave this lovely fella behind?

One public transport user left their prosthetic leg behind. TfL's lost property office

But it’s not just random junk. Some of these shelves hold seriously expensive stuff – Rolex watches, engagement and wedding rings and other expensive jewellery, the staff have seen it all. And much of it has never been claimed.

They have also found bags containing significant sums of cash, some as high as £15,000.

“There’s a lot of money that comes through here that we don’t get the chance to return because its owners assume it won’t get handed in,” says Ms Quaye.

TfL lost property office manager Diana Quaye
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TfL lost property office manager Diana Quaye

Can you guess some of the weirdest items that have been left on public transport since TfL’s lost property service opened for business 90 years ago? I doubt it.

Weirdest lost property

  • A box of cooked frogs – not just legs, full frogs
  • Dried snakes
  • A tray of different coloured false eyes
  • A glass jar filled with bats
  • A puffer fish
  • A wedding dress
  • A Dalek costume
  • A parachute
  • A bollard
  • A taxidermied fox with a crown – so it’s extra fancy
  • A prosthetic leg
  • A new 50-inch TV

Items most frequently left behind in 2021

  • 40,015 books, documents and cards
  • 34,593 bags
  • 24,429 items of clothing
  • 10,653 pairs of glasses
  • 9,234 keys

How is it all sorted?

Every day may be different, but make no mistake: it looks tedious.

Every single new item, whether it’s an iPhone or a filthy scarf, has to go through a rigorous process.

Woman's bag found at TfL's lost property office
Organiser walks through TfL's vast lost property office

First, they get sorted into one of a dozen different categories, from clothing, handbags and jewellery to keys, personal documents, phones and electronics. Plus general items – you know, your dried snakes, false eyes and such. This alone can take a full day to complete if it comes during a particularly busy day on public transport.

Each item then gets logged on a database, aptly called NotLost, with a unique reference number. Staff will input as much detail as possible about each item so that if an owner calls to find their property, there are plenty of identifiers.

They get moved to the correct storage area, waiting for their owners to come and claim them.

The vast majority of the time, however, the lost property staff’s efforts are in vain – as only about 8% of all items left behind get reunited with their owners.

On the left are a number of ancient-looking items found on TfL turf. To their right: a bollard
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On the right… a bollard

‘One man’s trash…’

“Every time my staff log something, whatever it is, they keep the idea in their heads that somebody will try and claim it,” Ms Quaye says. “That’s why they take their time, go through each item and make sure they get as much information as possible.

“I always say to myself: ‘Somebody else may not think it’s important, but a person out there may think it’s really important to them’.”

The day before my visit, TfL reunited a mum with her phone, she tells me. It had precious photos of her baby on it which hadn’t been downloaded on any other devices, so she assumed they had been lost forever.

It shows how seemingly replaceable items can be anything but, Ms Quaye says. “We put ourselves in their shoes because we can imagine what they’re going through when they lose things like that.”

The original TfL lost property office was founded in 1933, located at 200 Baker Street, near Marylebone
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The original TfL lost property office was founded in 1933, located at 200 Baker Street, near Marylebone

It's been 30 years, yet nobody's taking the  Mickey
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It’s been 30 years, yet nobody’s taking the Mickey

Ms Quaye’s sentiments echo across her workplace. I pass one member of the inputting team who is logging a shoddy-looking Spider-Man lunchbox; not far to his left there’s a rack containing at least 50 used water bottles, each fitted with a unique yellow tag.

“Got to be done,” another team member tells us. “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”

What happens to items that don’t get claimed?

While the hope is that all items get returned to their rightful owner, any that don’t within three months of being lost become the property of TfL (though cash is held for a year).

It either gets donated to charity, recycled, disposed of, or sold in public auctions – the profits of which go directly into running the lost property service. Any personal data is also completely wiped or destroyed.

There is the odd exception. If something is lost that the team at TfL considers particularly unique or rich in historical value, it might be kept well beyond the three-month expiration date.

Up a staircase, on a platform overseeing all of the site’s lost property, there’s a section containing the oldest, biggest and strangest items left on TfL lines over the years.

TfL photo of bags in their lost property office
A sewing machine sits in the office's section for older stuff

It’s where a lot of the aforementioned weirdest stuff lives, as well as some ancient-looking artefacts, artwork, an old sewing machine and a Mickey Mouse figure found in 1993. It looks a bit like a museum.

“That’s what we’re aiming for,” one member of staff says.

How do I claim my property?

You can enquire by going to TfL’s lost property page.

You’ll need to provide as much detail as you possibly can about what you lost, where you lost it and when.

the information page on TfL's lost property site

It can take up to 15 days for your enquiry to be processed. After that, TfL will notify you to let you know if they think they’ve got what you’re looking for, or if they need more information.

Once it’s been confirmed they have your property, they’ll let you know how you can reclaim it – either by visiting their office by appointment or having it couriered for an additional cost on top of an admin fee, which can vary depending on what the item is and where it was found.

And if you’ve ever left anything on the Tube in the past, never to be reunited, rest assured it was well looked after. Or, if you were once the proud owner of a box of cooked frogs, a regal taxidermied fox, or a mystery bollard, you can take pride knowing it may have found its place in TfL museum history.

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Man, 53, charged over Liverpool parade incident

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Man, 53, charged over Liverpool parade incident

A 53-year-old man has been charged after a car was driven into a crowd at Liverpool FC’s trophy parade.

Paul Doyle, from the West Derby area of Liverpool, has been charged with seven offences, Merseyside Police said.

The businessman, who is a father-of-three, is accused of two counts of unlawful and malicious wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and two counts of causing unlawful and malicious grievous bodily harm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Paul Doyle
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Paul Doyle

Doyle is also accused of two counts of attempted unlawful and malicious grievous bodily harm with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and one count of dangerous driving.

He is due to appear before Liverpool Magistrates Court on Friday.

The charges relate to six people, including two children. A wounding charge and an attempted grievous bodily harm charge relate to a child.

A police car was outside Doyle’s four-bedroom detached family home in the West Derby area on Thursday morning.

According to his social media, he has travelled extensively including Japan, Fiji, India and Australia. Doyle has posted pictures of himself competing in triathlons, and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

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New Liverpool incident footage

Thousands of fans were gathered in Liverpool city centre on Monday to celebrate the Premier League champions’ title win when a car struck a crowd on Water Street.

Police said a total of 79 people were injured in the incident, with the youngest aged nine, and the oldest being a 78-year-old.

Seven people remain in hospital in a stable condition.

Forensic officers at the scene in Water Street. Pic: PA
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Forensic officers at the scene in Water Street. Pic: PA

‘Huge volume of evidence’

Chief crown prosecutor for the CPS Mersey-Cheshire, Sarah Hammond, told a news conference on Thursday that the investigation was at an early stage and a “huge volume of evidence” was being reviewed.

“This includes multiple pieces of video footage and numerous witness statements. It is important to ensure that every victim gets the justice they deserve.

“The charges will be kept under review as the investigation progresses.”

Police ‘working tirelessly’

Also at the briefing where the charges were announced was Assistant Chief Constable of Merseyside Police, Jenny Sims, who said: “I fully understand how this incident has left us all shocked and saddened, and I know many will continue to have concerns and questions.

“Our detectives are working tirelessly, with diligence and professionalism, to seek the answer to all of those questions. When we are able to, we will provide further information.”

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Body found in search for missing teenage girl who fell into reservoir

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Body found in search for missing teenage girl who fell into reservoir

A body has been found in the search for a missing teenage girl who fell into a reservoir, police have said.

West Yorkshire Police confirmed they recovered a body from the Baitings Reservoir, near Ripponden, on Thursday afternoon.

A formal identification is yet to take place, but police believe the body to be that of the missing teenage girl.

The girl’s family have been informed.

Emergency services were called to the reservoir at 1.17pm on Wednesday following reports that a teenage girl had fallen into the water from Baitings Dam.

Police, fire and ambulance crews, as well as an underwater search team, were deployed to the scene for the search, which continued on Thursday until a body was found.

Read more from Sky News:
Age range of Liverpool crash victims released
Drought declared in North West England

Detective Inspector Laura Hall of Calderdale’s Safeguarding Team said: “While formal identification is yet to take place, the girl’s family have been informed and are being supported by specially-trained officers.

“My thoughts go out to her family and friends at this very sad time.

“Our enquiries are continuing into the death in order to establish exactly what happened yesterday, but we do not believe it to be suspicious.”

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Ages of youngest and oldest Liverpool crash victims released

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Ages of youngest and oldest Liverpool crash victims released

The youngest victim injured in the Liverpool parade crash on Monday is nine years old, police have said.

They added that the oldest is 78, with all 79 people injured understood to be British. Seven remain in hospital in a stable condition.

Merseyside Police declined to say what drug the 53-year-old man arrested over the incident is alleged to have taken.

“We wouldn’t go into this detail at this stage of the investigation,” the force said.

Police guards the site where a 53-year-old British man plowed a minivan into a crowd of Liverpool soccer fans who were celebrating the city's Premier League championship Monday, injuring more than 45 people in Liverpool, England, Tuesday, May 27, 2025.(AP Photo/Jon Super)
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Police at the scene in Liverpool. Pic: AP

Forensic officers at the scene in Water Street.
Pic: PA
Image:
Forensic officers in Water Street. Pic: PA

Police are still questioning the driver and were granted further time to do so on Wednesday.

Officers have until Thursday evening to question the man from West Derby.

He is in custody on suspicion of attempted murder, dangerous driving and drug driving.

Police believe the car which struck pedestrians was able to follow an ambulance crew attending to someone suffering a heart attack after a road block was temporarily lifted.

Hundreds of thousands of Liverpool fans had turned out to celebrate their team’s Premier League title when the incident unfolded on Water Street just after 6pm on Monday.

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‘My boy in his pram, got bounced’

‘The best day of my life turned into worst’

Sky News interviewed a lifelong Liverpool fan who said his five-month-old son was “bounced” 15ft (4.6m) in his pram after they were hit by the vehicle.

The child was not counted in the police’s injury tally.

Daniel Eveson, 36, also said his partner had been driven over.

“The best day of my life turned into [the] worst,” Mr Eveson said.

He added: “Me and my partner were flat on the roof, on the bonnet… we were just both trying to hold on for dear life with Ted next to us.

“And my partner went under the wheels of the car, of the front of the car, and it rolled over her leg, and I just bounced off to the side, but my boy and his pram got bounced totally in the opposite direction – about 15ft down the road.”

Read more:
How the parade crash unfolded
Police given more time to question Liverpool suspect
Why police released ‘unprecedented’ details

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer travelled to Liverpool to meet with police chiefs and the local metro mayor.

He said he was being kept informed of developments, adding: “The scenes on Monday were just awful, to see how incredible joy at an amazing achievement turned to horror in a moment.”

Messages of support have been sent to the people of Liverpool, including from the King who said: “I know that the strength of community spirit for which your city is renowned will be a comfort and support to those in need.”

The Prince and Princess of Wales said they were “deeply saddened” by the incident.

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