How Christmas stole the Grinch! Care home theft sparks outrage in Edwinstowe

But when the Grinch is a victim of dastardly deeds himself and gets nicked, it is the thieves who have ruined the festivities, according to enraged villagers in Edwinstowe.

A model of the icon, made famous in films and books, was created by Bob Douglas, the gardener at the Sherwood Lodge Care Centre on Mansfield Road.

Dressed in his smart Santa’s outfit, the Grinch has stood proudly by the entrance of the home for each of the last three Christmas holidays and delighted residents and passers-by. Some have even had selfies taken with him.

But on Sunday morning, it was discovered he had been stolen, and a light-hearted Facebook appeal for help from the Sherwood Lodge manager Lisa Allsop was met with messages of support.

"Someone has stolen our Grinch!” shouted Lisa. “Shame on you for stealing from a care home.

"Our gardener works hard, making these things for people to enjoy. Please share and shame the thief”.

Tracey Ellis responded by saying: “That’s absolutely disgusting”, while Liz Madine said: “That’s awful.”

Jessica Louise Humphreys commented: “It’s so sad we won’t see him every morning.” Lea Moody added: “Absolutely shocking. Keep your eyes peeled, folks.” And Maria Lomax wondered: “How can someone stoop so low?”

It has clearly upset the kids too. Mum Helen Bean said: “My girls loved seeing him. I had to drive slowly so they could look every morning. If I went a little too quick, I got told off!”

The plot thickened when Gillian Wilson revealed she had seen “someone putting it together at 11.45am on Saturday” and pondered if he had actually been the thief.

But Jade Robertson reported that he had seen the Grinch in situ at 7.50pm that night.

The theft is developing into the great Christmas mystery of 2022. Sammy Lou described it as “the saddest thing”, while Gemma Williams said: “This is so terrible, so maddening.”

Defiant gardener Bob has responded by exacting revenge on the thieves and creating a new ‘policeman Grinch’, complete with bobby’s hat and high-vis vest! But so far, PC Grinch has failed to solve the crime.

At least the Grinch can’t steal Christmas this year. Because, it seems, Christmas has stolen the Grinch!