There is a sign which I drive past frequently which welcomes people to the village of Wilsden, a couple of miles out of Bingley.
For as long as I can remember, the sign has proudly proclaimed that Wilsden is twinned with Eppeville, which Wikipedia tells me is "a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France".
Which sounds very nice. However, in recent weeks I have noticed that Wilsden - according to this sign, at least - is no longer twinned with Eppeville.
It is twinned with Elvesville.
I am not sure why the sign has been changed - it has been obviously doctored, but in a slightly professional manner rather than a mindless vandalism one. Someone has taken the trouble to print out Elvesville in a convincing font and stick a piece of card or plastic over Eppeville.
Now, I don't know what the good people of a commune in Picardie might think of this, nor the powers-that-be on the Parish Council in Wilsden, but for some reason this cheers me up immensely every time I see it.
Imagine being twinned with Elvesville! Just think of the exchange trips! I am always hopeful, as I drive past, of seeing a party of small people in brightly-coloured felt hats and shiny shoes with buckles on them being shown around the sights of Wilsden.
They would take out their elvish mobile phones and take selfies (elfies, perhaps?) outside the butcher's shop or the local pub, gathering on the Co-op car park for their next outing to the car showroom or the Chinese takeaway.
And I patiently await for the Facebook pages of the members of the Parish Council to be updated with photos of them on a return visit, crouching low to get through the little wooden doors of Elvesville, proudly posing with gnomes and pixies from the Elvesville local authority.
But seriously - who has done this? And for what purpose? Wilsden isn't very far from Cottingley, of course, as the crow flies, but that was more about fairies than elves. And anyone who doesn't know the difference, just go and call and elf a fairy and see where that gets you.
Whoever you are, I salute you for adding a bit of mystery and strangeness to an otherwise fairly pedestrian road sign. Maybe you could drop me a line via email, or contact me in some way via Twitter, to explain the reasoning behind your actions.
It is to be presumed that people in Wilsden have, in fact, noticed this, and I like to think that the reason the sign is still there is because other people, like me, quite like the charming, whimsical mind of whoever is responsible.
I do hope that this piece doesn't, in fact, tip off the mundane-minded who will go and remove the sign, because, let's face it, we can all do with a bit of whimsy in the world.
And if there are, in fact, elves in the locality, and they are short of something to do while on their holiday, I have a pair of shoes that need mending...
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