A LETTER has finally reached its intended destination at a vicarage in west Cumbria - after a 32-and-a-half-year journey.

Stamp marks on the envelope suggest it has gone from Gosforth, near Seascale, to Gosforth in Newcastle upon Tyne ­— before reaching its final destination at the vicarage in Seaton, near Workington.

The Vicar of Seaton Ian Grainger recalled the moment his curiosity was pricked when he noticed the brown paper envelope, which was covered in plastic, at his front door.

“I was out visiting a family on Monday morning about a funeral and when I got back, the post had been," he said. "When I turned it [the letter] over all I could see was the address, and instead of saying Seaton, it said Gosforth. Someone had crossed that out and put the post code on, so it had found its way here. It’s amazing. That’s the only way to describe it. I’ve walked through my door and found this thing that’s been circulating for all that time.”

The letter, which was addressed to Ian’s predecessor John Kelly, was revealed to be an invoice sent by Cumbrian Newspapers for Christmas advertising.

“Naturally intrigued, I opened it to see what it was and found that it was an invoice for the previous vicar, who happens to be a friend of mine. It was an invoice for some Christmas advertising for Workington and District Churches, dated December 31, 1988. It’s bizarre.

“I have tried to contact the former vicar, John Kelly, but let’s be fair ­— I don’t think anyone would remember an invoice from 32 years ago.

“I know the post office and postmen have been struggling with illness and isolation recently, but 32 and a half years is a bit of a long time. I don’t think there will ever be an answer to it. I’m pretty certain that a reminder was sent to the right address at the time and it was paid. You just can’t help but laugh about it, but the serious side is how did it happen?”

A Royal Mail spokesman said: “It is difficult to speculate on what may have happened to this item of mail.

“It is likely that it was put back into the postal system by someone recently, rather than being lost or stuck somewhere in the network. Royal Mail regularly checks all its delivery offices and clears its processing machines daily. Once an item is in the postal system then it will be delivered to the address on the letter.”