Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Record
Daily Record
World
Abigail O'Leary & Nicola Croal

Widow in 'no doubt' man from Indian restaurant promo is husband who died nine years ago

A widow has 'no doubt' a man spotted in a video of diners at an Indian restaurant is her husband despite him being dead for nine years. The mystery continues after Lucy Watson left a shocking comment on Spice Cottage's Facebook page last week in the promo video they uploaded which showed tables full of diners.

Ms Watson, who claims to have 'instantly' noticed husband Harry Doherty in the clip, asked the restaurant in Westbourne, West Sussex, when the footage was filmed because her late husband and his son featured in it even though he died in 2014. However, the restaurant notified her the video was only taken earlier in the month and they are sticking to the guns, the Mirror reports.

Ms Watson told MailOnline: "The moment I saw the thing I thought 'Oh my God – that's Harry'. It was so instant. I didn't even have to think. He'd be eating a chicken korma because that's all he ever ate.

"There was no doubt in my mind it was my husband. I couldn't pause the thing so I had to replay it about 30 times and each time I was surer and surer.

"I don't really use Facebook apart from snooping on friends or catching up with people. I was scrolling through and the video popped up."

The Spice Cottage uploaded the footage to their Facebook page last week (Spice Cottage)

The sighting has been compared to the famous Canoe man John Darwin who faked his own death at sea in a life insurance scam.

The post was uploaded on January 16 along with the caption: "New year, new mood! For the last few weeks, we've been working hard to make our dining experience even more memorable. Join us for a perfect blend of exquisite flavours, with classical and unique dishes inspired by ancient family recipes."

Social media users have been left baffled by the mysterious comment as the restaurant insists the footage is not nine years old (Spice Cottage)

Among the comments, Ms Watson questioned: "How old is the footage? My late husband and his son are on the first shot and he died in 2014??" Social media users have been left baffled by the bizarre situation as the sighting has been compared to the famous Canoe man John Darwin who faked his own death at sea in a life insurance scam.

Other commenters on the post have been discussing possible explanations or ridiculous conspiracy theories surrounding his death but Ms Watson has dismissed them all. She described her late husband as having a distinctive look with a big build and white hair and claimed the restaurant must be using old footage.

The shocked woman claimed to have spotted her late husband who passed away in 2014 and his son in the clip among other diners (Spice Cottage)

She added: "They are never busy like that any more, that's the problem. They have obviously posted this to generate customers because they are really up against it now."

She said she was bewildered by the restaurant's response and the crazy theories being suggested on the internet regarding her husband's death in 2014. Lucy recalled him being severely ill in hospital where he died while waiting for a liver transplant.

Harry Doherty was an award-winning journalist and a popular larger-than-life character. The father-of-three was born in Northern Ireland and won awards for his coverage of the Troubles before he moved to England to relaunch his career as a music journalist.

He later established his own rock magazine and was a friend of Queen guitarist Brian May after he wrote an official book on the band.

The manager, Rofiqul Islam claims the video was taken just two weeks ago and the restaurant does look very different now and has brand news tables shown in the video. He added it was 'quite an unusual situation'.

Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here .

READ NEXT:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.