British Batman Unmasked, Actual Story Behind The Spectacle Is Of Course Disappointing

Yesterday, we brought you the wonderful, uplifting story of a man dressed as Batman who dropped off a suspected criminal at a police station in Bradford, England. Now that all the facts are in, we can look at things in the cold light of day and tell you the dream-shattering truth — the Bradford Batman wasn’t a masked avenger on the side of justice, after all. Instead, he was just a truck driver who happened to be wearing a Batman costume when he gave a friend a ride to the police station to turn himself in. Which is really closer to an accomplice than it is to a vigilante, when you think about it.

Locals in the West Yorkshire town had been speculating as the the identity of the masked man, with several local politicians coming forward to say they were not the men behind the cowl before the real Dark Knight stepped forward with his story — and boy, was it not the story we were hoping for.

It turns out that Stan Worby, a 39-year-old truck driver, is the hero West Yorkshire deserves, but not the one it needs. At least, he was the one his 27-year-old friend Danny Frayne needed last week. Frayne had been wanted by police on charges including burglary, and was being urged to turn himself in. When he finally decided to, he called Worby to ask for a ride to the police station.

Unfortunately, Worby was hours away in London attending a soccer game when Frayne called. And not just any soccer game, but the championship match between Swansea and his own beloved Bradford City — which explains why he was dressed as Batman, we guess? He was also in the company of a friend dressed as Robin, who we assume lost a bet of some sort. On receiving the call, Worby explained that he couldn’t drop Frayne off at the moment, because he was drunk at a soccer game, but that Frayne should sit tight, and Worby would pick him up later that evening on his way home. Which to his credit, he did.

That’s right, folks — Stan Worby did the least Batman series of things possible in the lead up to being lauded for being a crime fighter. And while we’re glad to have that mystery put to bed, part of us wishes Worby had just let us hold onto the dream of a world in which a respectable batman is a real thing. C’est la vie.

(via Telegraph)

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• Let’s not hold it against Worby — becoming Batman is no easy feat