Overview
- During the 2020 COVID lockdown the couple discovered a bricked-up room under their cellar steps and later cleared coal to reveal a rusted paint tin.
- Months after finding the tin the family opened it carefully with tools because it smelled of ammonia and filmed the moment for their TikTok account @scruffyandsorted.
- Inside were paper-wrapped stacks of £5 notes dated to the 1970s that totaled more than £1,000; the family dried the notes, played with them briefly, then deposited them at a bank.
- Online commenters raised the possibility that the notes could be worth more to collectors or at auction, but the family said they needed the cash and used it to treat their children and pay bills while Luisa was temporarily out of work.
- Reporters noted that many English houses were built before 1919 so sealed rooms and forgotten storage are common and that caution and preservation advice matter when handling old, damp finds.