THE Covid lockdowns certainly seem like a distant memory now.
There will be many aspects of this time in 2020 and 2021 that many are happy to leave in the past - and other some may recall fondly.
At the Herald, we have decided to look back to a story from this time which lead to a mystery that may never be solved.
Back in February 2021 a famous face popped up in Ardrossan for the very first time.
That person - well thing technically - would be a six foot cuddly teddy bear, who captured the community’s curiosity when appeared sitting on a bench in Ardrossan’s Glasgow Street.
Later becoming known as Rainbow the Three Toons Bear, they would do a fair bit of travelling thereafter.
It wasn't long before he crossed the border to Saltcoats and was spotted sitting proudly on the small boat outside Cali Stores - this time dawning a sign to proudly telling passers by to "keep smiling".
The bear was then returned to Ardrossan and was found outside Park Church in Stanley Road again dawning a different look with a red heart attached to him.
It wasn't long before he was visiting local business people and Rainbow was captured at K9 Creche in Stevenston before heading to the former Registry office in Saltcoats then making his way along Hamilton Street to the Kandy Bar.
The popular bear, who amassed a following of over a thousand on social media, was even pictured partying away at The Metro.
Though it was at the steps of the popular nightclub where they were last seen and seemingly never returned.
Suddenly, the snaps shared of Rainbow around town stopped - and we were going on a bear hunt.
As it transpired the much-loved bear had been kidnapped, and the person responsible had demands for their return.
They demanded two Gregg’s sausage rolls in exchange for his return which were to be left on a specific bench in Glebe Park.
But no one showed up and Rainbow was still missing.
There was one rumoured sighting in April that year, but locals were quick to dispel the theory noting it was not the same bear who appeared back in the boat across from the Cali Stores.
That would be Stormzy, a fellow six foot cuddly bear, but definitely not Rainbow.
So, to this day, Rainbow's old Facebook page remains in existence but is no longer active and the bear itself is still nowhere to be seen.
At the Herald, we want to find out - does anyone really know what happened to the bear?
Perhaps Rainbow is still out there, or perhaps we will never know.
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