'Horse Boy' reappears on Google Street View in Aberdeen

The Horse Boy's second Street View appearance, on Hazledene Road in Aberdeen. Photo: GOOGLE

By Tom Chivers
Published: 3:07PM BST 02 Jul 2010

The mysterious Google Street View 'Horse Boy' has reappeared on the streets of Aberdeen, after a short, unexplained disappearance.

The original Horse Boy, a man in a purple jumper and a rubber horse's head mask, was spotted on Google Street View on Hardgate in Aberdeen. He has appeared separately, now in a green jumper and with a human-headed schoolgirl companion, on Hazlemere Road in the same city.

The first, purple-jumpered image was taken down by Google for a while, but has now been restored. No explanation was given either for the disappearance or subsequent restoration.

While no-one knows who Horse Boy is or what the point of him is, there are theories. Some bloggers think he will turn out to have been part of a corporate publicity stunt. Others point out that buying a plastic horse mask is not beyond the wit of man. A commenter on the BBC website said: "Horse boy isn't a person, it's a cheap mask - for example I saw at least three people wearing similar heads at this year's Download Festival in Donington."

Nonetheless he has become an international phenomenon. Stefan Kleen from Germany said he met horse-boy at a festival: "He only spoke English so we didn't really talk a lot to him." He has also apparently been spotted in Norwich and Cardiff.

A YouTube user by the name of TheHumanHorse has posted a video claiming to be Horse Boy, saying: "I am Back! After I was spotted on Google Street View I thought I’d upload this video to show I am still around! Horse boy coming to a garden near you soon!"

However, commenters point out that he seems to have lost a lot of weight since his Street View appearances, suggesting that the search for the real Horse Boy may still be ongoing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/7868329/Horse-Boy-reappears-on-Google-Street-View-in-Aberdeen.html

Mystery surrounds 'horse-boy' on Google Street View

Thursday, 24 June 2010 15:13 UK

Mystery surrounds a man wearing a horse's head who has been captured on Google's Street View in Aberdeen.

The man - who has become known as 'horse-boy' - can be seen in the Hardgate area of the city.

The sighting has become a popular attraction on Google's service, which offers a photographic map of streets.

The man is wearing dark trousers, a purple shirt - and a brown and white horse's head.

Dozens of BBC news website users have e-mailed from across Europe to say they know who horse boy is.

Others have sent in images of the mystery horse-head wearer and some have claimed to be him.

Stefan Kleen from Germany said he and a friend met horse-boy at a German festival last weekend.

He added: "He only spoke English so we didn't really talk a lot to him."

Anders Hauge reckons he has been shopping in Haugesund in Norway; John Hammond was convinced he was playing the fairways and relaxing in the bars of Marbella and Julian Sykes said he had been sighted in Cardiff.

John Ainsworth insisted he saw horse-boy in Norwich earlier in the year walking through Wensum Park.

He said: "I thought I was hallucinating at first but then realised it was real."

Other readers have not been impressed with the story and some have told the website that it is not newsworthy and is a prank to generate further publicity.

A number of contributors have said that horse-boy features in other parts of Google's street view service.

Mark Coates said: "If you go down the road and turn back you can see him putting on the horse head and on the shot back up the road again he has white hair."

Are you 'horse-boy' or do you know who it is? Contact the BBC Scotland news website at newsonlinescotland@bbc.co.uk

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/north_east_orkney_and_shetland/10401345.stm
(Submitted by Ben Lovegrove)