Hampshire Barn Man
Who was the man in the barn?
The mystery that may be solved hundreds of miles from where he was found.
On 1 December 2017, the body of a man – who was about 175cm tall and aged between 35 and 50 – was found in a remote barn near Micheldever in Hampshire. A post-mortem examination was not able to confirm how he died, but he had been there for some time.
After a new image of the man as he appeared in life was released in 2019, witnesses came forward to say they recognised him and that he had camped in their field in 2012.
Other witnesses said he spoke with a strong French accent, was a smoker, had short brown hair, was unshaven and did not wear glasses – although he was found alongside some reading glasses.
He also told witnesses:
He had served in the French military but did not like it
He was deaf in one ear after an explosion while with the military
His mother and father were deceased
He was walking across Britain and was on his way to Ireland and Canada, having been to Ireland before
What we now know after isotope analysis:
The man spent his early years, until roughly the age of 12, somewhere in the region of southern or south-eastern France, Corsica, or western Switzerland
He may have had a diet rich in fish in his early years
He lived for a period in a large town or city
We’re confident that someone in France, or French-speaking Switzerland, holds the key to Hampshire Barn Man being reunited with his name at last.
Questions you can ask yourself
Did you encounter this man, or anyone matching his description, at any point?
If so, did he tell you anything about himself?
Were you in the French military, or do you know anyone who was, so you can share it with them?