Disbelief as lost wedding ring is dug up in wood

Stephen Eldridge enjoys digging up old finds with his metal detector when he has some spare time.

But when he saw upset wife Suzanne post on a community Facebook page that the ring had been lost in Chipperfield woods, he offered his services to help find it for free.

Stephen told the Gazette: “We walked for about two hours without success.

“I decided on the way back to give it another sweep and then looked behind this tree.

“I then got a very good signal and laying amongst the leaves was her husband’s wedding ring.

“She was ecstatic, and so was I. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack. It’s one of my best finds.”

Stephen, who works with adults with learning difficulties for his day job, insisted that he wasn’t to be paid for his generosity – but did receive a bacon roll and a hot chocolate as a thank you while they warmed up after a cold search.

Local resident Suzanne, who has been married to her husband for six years, said: “We had been walking through the woods on February 3, but didn’t realise that my husband’s wedding ring was missing until the following morning.

“We looked a few times but couldn’t find it. I posted on Facebook to let people know who to contact if they found a wedding ring.

“I thought it was absolutely lost, but Stephen found it.

“I hadn’t met him before but he seems to be one of those really nice people who is just happy to help others.”