A LADY from Bude has received a Christmas card from a little girl in Ireland, after discovering the young girl’s message in a bottle at Widemouth Bay.

Rebecca Whittaker was walking along the beach at Widemouth when she discovered a glass bottle that had washed up along the shore.

Picking it up, Rebecca noticed a rolled up piece of paper that had been stuffed inside, and she eagerly unravelled it to see what it could be.

Inside the bottle was an ink-smudged, slightly damp letter — a fascinating find for Rebecca, who was simply walking along her local beach.

Dated to have been written and sent on November 1, the letter had made a hasty journey all the way from Mallow in Ireland, and was found at Widemouth on the afternoon of Wednesday, November 16.

The author was 12-year-old Ciara Walsh, a fan of swimming, reading and bowling, from Mallow. In her letter, she wrote ‘LOL’ and ‘YOLO’ in coloured pen — perhaps she was not expecting for her letter to be discovered!

In the letter, Ciara made a simple request for the finder to send her a reply, and left her home address on the letter.

Taking to the local group on Facebook, Widemouth Task Force, Rebecca posted a photograph of the letter and made a swift reply to Ciara.

On Friday, December 9, Rebecca reported on Widemouth Task Force Facebook page that she had received a Christmas card from Ciara, wishing her and her family a merry Christmas and a happy new year.