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A running prank has developed, which has made national news at times, where people steal a garden gnome from an unknowing person's lawn and then send the owner photos of the gnome and sometimes cryptic messages that were supposedly written by the gnome for a time as a practical joke before returning
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There have also been a number of criminal incidents in which individuals or groups steal large numbers of garden gnomes without the intention of returning, often with the purported mission of "freeing" gnomes and "returning them to the wild". These crimes can cause distress to the victims of the
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was a community that considered gnoming to be stealing garden gnomes from other people's property, without the intention of returning them, as part of their purported mission to "free" gnomes and "return them to the wild", which has sometimes led to criminal charges, jail time, or fines.
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in northeastern France with a note that stated, "When you read these few words we will no longer be part of your selfish world, where we serve merely as pretty decorations." The Front was in the news again in 2000 when they stole 20 gnomes overnight from a garden exhibition in
318:, and the United States, and became known to the public in the 1990s when they took credit for the theft of hundreds of garden gnomes around France. In 1997, their ringleader was sent to prison and fined for stealing over 150 garden gnomes over a period of several years.
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in May 2005, because she became tired of all of the media attention. However, in
February 2006, it was reported that the gnome had actually been secretly purchased on eBay by the owner's friends who continued to take photos of it around the world in locations such as
365:(2001) in which the main character persuaded her father to follow his dream of touring the world by stealing his garden gnome and having an air hostess friend send pictures of it from all over the world. The travelling gnome theme later became the basis for
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gnome-owner was distressed when she discovered her gnome had been stolen at the weekend. A note was found in its place: 'Dear mum, couldn't stand the solitude any longer. Gone off to see the world. Don't be worried, I'll be back soon. Love Bilbo
68:. Some instances have become national and international news stories, where people have stolen a garden gnome from a garden, and then sent the owner photos of the gnome for a period of time as a practical joke, before returning it.
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Whilst seeming insignificant at first, it is in fact part of the popular
Achievement "Little Rocket Man", which requires the player to carry the gnome to the final location of the game (White Forest) and place it within the
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in May 1995, when the
Wiltons first noticed their gnome missing (episode 3853) and then received a postcard from Eastbourne purportedly sent by that gnome (episode 3855). The prank was further popularized by the film
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429:(2007), players receive a special achievement award for launching a garden gnome into outer space in a rocket after carrying it throughout most of the game. In November 2020, a replica of the garden gnome from
423:, the garden gnomes are randomly spawned during various holidays with the player's task is to appease them with various stuff, including coffee, fruitcake pie, salad, toy or future cube. In the video game
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magazine. At the end of the week-long trip, the friends anonymously returned the gnome to its owner's front porch with a photo album titled "Gnomeâs Spring Break 2005", which included the issue of
282:. The perpetrator sent him a letter stating "Goodbyes are not forever, Goodbyes are not the end, They simply mean Iâll miss you, Until we meet again.", and then continued to taunt him by making a
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In 1998, the Garden Gnome
Liberation Front made headlines again when they staged a "mass suicide" of gnomes by hanging 11 garden gnomes with nooses around their necks under a bridge at
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The concept of the travelling gnome dates back to the 1970s when Henry
Sunderland photographed his own garden gnomes, which he named Harry and Charlie, while he was travelling around
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arrested Barton E. Bishop (commonly known as "Gnome bandit"), a
Highlands, Georgia thief who was responsible for stealing garden gnomes among other valuables from people's porches.
310:) is born in 1997 in Alençon, France, aiming to release garden gnomes in their "natural habitat", for instance forests. In 2006 they claimed 165 active groups in France, Canada,
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A notable instance of the travelling gnome prank was arguably in 2005 when a group of college students took a garden gnome, dubbed "Gnome
Severson" in news, from a property in
271:. After it was returned for the second time, the original owner, referring to it as "the prodigal gnome", said she had decided to keep it and would not sell it on eBay again.
1008:
330:, and they were suspected in 2006, when 80 gnomes were stolen in the central Limousin region of France under a banner that said "gnome mistreated, gnome liberated".
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profile in the Gnome's name then followed by posting pictures of it in many locations, such as the cinema, pubs, a trampoline park, a bowling alley, and an arcade.
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In 2008, a 53-year-old man, who law enforcement officials believed acted alone, was arrested on suspicion of stealing as many as 170 garden gnomes in the
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devices, lets users attach clipart of virtual gnomes to their travel photographs that they can share with friends.
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The travelling gnome has appeared in several video games. For example, it has been used as a recurring
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lawn ornament brought on a trip and photographed in front of famous landmarks. The practice is called
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1155:"Gnome Chompski is now one with the cosmos, and Gabe Newell donated $ 200K to a children's hospital"
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211:. Gnome Severson became a national news story after the group ran into socialite
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417:(2004), in which gnomes reveal themselves in the game's buildable landmarks. In
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183:". A similar, earlier kidnapping incident occurred in Stamford, Lincs, England
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478:â a similar project where a physical object is photographed in various locales
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at a gas station, who posed for a picture with the gnome that was printed in
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30:"Roaming gnome" redirects here. For the Travelocity marketing campaign, see
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1188:"Gnonstop Gnomes Appear On iPhone And Android. Don't Try To Stop Them"
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The earliest record of a prank involving a travelling gnome is from
129:. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.
744:"Lock up your gnomes - Plymouth region is kidnap capital of the UK"
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The
Enchanter Completed: A Tribute Anthology for L. Sprague de Camp
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The short fantasy story "The Garden Gnome
Freedom Front" (2005) by
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According to ABC News, the owner decided to auction the gnome on
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974:"'Gnome bandit' accused of Highlands thefts arrested in Georgia"
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1001:"Louisville man known as 'gnome bandit' caught hiding in attic"
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913:"Nearly 80 stolen garden gnomes discovered in central France"
628:"Roaming Gnome is Home, Complete with Photo Album and a Name"
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The travelling gnome prank was a subplot on the
British soap
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theft, particularly if the gnomes have sentimental value.
1032:"'Gnome Bandit' arrested after falling out of an attic"
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386:, deals with the supernatural aspect of this custom.
1094:"Every Gnome in The Sims 4 (And What Appeases Them)"
1063:"Bail set at $ 55,000 for Highlands 'gnome bandit'"
536:Phil Tibble (24 September 1986). "Regular Shorts".
859:"Garden Gnome Liberation Front strikes Paris show"
278:Gnome named Gnorman was stolen from its owner in
304:France's Garden Gnome Liberation Front (French:
8:
692:"Traveling Gnome Receives Media Attention"
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145:Learn how and when to remove this message
911:Agence France-Presse (3 November 2006).
865:. Reuters. 13 April 2000. Archived from
1030:Jankowski, Jonathan (12 October 2018).
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307:Front de libération des nains de jardin
225:and other pictures of the gnome around
1124:"Garden Gnomewebsite=Combine OverWiki"
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505:Sunderland, Henry (26 November 2007).
250:, which sold with the photo album for
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882:"Garden gnomes of the world, unite!"
814:from the original on 23 October 2015
671:from the original on 19 October 2013
999:Mallory, Laurel (18 October 2018).
754:from the original on 7 October 2016
598:"The Strange Practice of 'Gnoming'"
596:Morrill, Jenny (2 September 2015),
1153:Stanton, Rich (25 November 2020).
1092:Delgreco, Marina (14 March 2021).
786:from the original on 11 April 2016
776:"Garden gnomes gather for freedom"
742:Plymouth Herald (19 August 2014),
723:from the original on 28 April 2022
717:"Thomas taunted over gnome thefts"
342:Louisville Metro Police Department
25:
1194:from the original on 29 July 2013
1186:Schonfeld, Erick (20 June 2011).
1130:from the original on 12 June 2018
807:Gnome freedom group strikes again
577:from the original on 4 March 2009
567:"'Itchy feet' gnome returns home"
1061:Chandler, Chris (25 July 2018).
972:Novelly, Thomas (10 July 2018).
923:from the original on 30 May 2009
880:Getzlaff, J.A. (21 April 2000).
626:Edwards, Peter (3 August 2016).
507:"A Life-Changing Ice Experience"
203:and brought it on a roadtrip to
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661:"Gnome Hits the Road ... Again"
551:"There's No Place Like Gnome".
690:Hamsik, Lindsay (6 May 2005).
399:computer game series, such as
73:Garden Gnomes Liberation Front
1:
471:List of practical joke topics
18:Garden Gnome Liberation Front
553:Rutland and Stamford Mercury
27:Garden gnome taken on a trip
511:Christchurch City Libraries
125:the claims made and adding
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476:The Flat Stanley Project
431:Half-Life 2: Episode Two
426:Half-Life 2: Episode Two
373:" advertising campaign.
40:A travelling gnome with
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187:Travelling gnome prank
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943:"Gnome Bandit Caught"
538:Sydney Morning Herald
171:Sydney Morning Herald
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869:on 16 November 2011.
667:. 14 February 2006.
240:Good Morning America
82:that was created in
448:, a mobile app for
420:The Sims 4: Seasons
197:Redmond, Washington
834:Unknown parameter
573:. 12 August 2008.
433:was launched into
371:Where is my Gnome?
348:In popular culture
337:region of France.
174:reported that an "
110:possibly contains
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32:Where is my Gnome?
696:The Western Front
355:Coronation Street
168:in 1986 when the
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1171:30 November
818:17 December
790:17 December
758:17 December
701:17 December
642:17 December
612:17 December
581:17 December
521:21 November
482:ToyVoyagers
437:on board a
405:(1999) and
367:Travelocity
76: [
1213:Categories
1108:9 November
1077:9 November
1046:9 November
1015:9 November
984:9 November
957:9 November
896:9 November
748:The Herald
727:9 November
493:References
439:Rocket Lab
414:Sim City 4
408:The Sims 3
402:Sim City 3
391:Easter egg
294:See also:
205:California
159:Antarctica
119:improve it
917:USA Today
838:ignored (
487:Wastwater
340:In 2018,
235:Las Vegas
227:Hollywood
166:Australia
123:verifying
1192:Archived
1165:Archived
1160:PC Gamer
1128:Archived
1102:Archived
1098:GameRant
1071:Archived
1040:Archived
1009:Archived
978:Archived
951:Archived
921:Archived
890:Archived
827:citation
812:archived
784:Archived
752:archived
721:Archived
669:Archived
665:ABC News
636:Archived
606:archived
575:Archived
571:BBC News
515:Archived
460:See also
444:rocket.
442:Electron
396:The Sims
335:Brittany
284:Facebook
269:Thailand
1198:18 July
1141:rocket.
1134:10 June
450:Android
312:Germany
252:US$ 360
117:Please
91:Origins
66:gnoming
46:Big Ben
1229:Gnomes
675:6 June
362:Amélie
267:, and
261:Mexico
257:Canada
233:, and
223:People
218:People
209:Nevada
84:France
42:London
1224:Theft
1036:Fox19
947:Metro
927:3 May
886:Salon
328:Paris
323:Briey
316:Spain
265:Italy
80:]
60:is a
1200:2013
1173:2020
1136:2018
1110:2022
1079:2022
1067:WLKY
1048:2022
1017:2022
1005:WAVE
986:2022
959:2022
929:2010
898:2022
840:help
820:2016
792:2016
760:2016
729:2022
703:2016
677:2014
644:2016
614:2016
583:2016
523:2014
452:and
369:'s "
276:ASDA
248:eBay
207:and
201:U.S.
192:it.
179:xxx.
71:The
52:The
863:CNN
780:CNN
454:iOS
393:in
121:by
56:or
44:'s
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