The mystery of the message in a bottle in the North Sea that was solved after almost 50 years

The mystery of a message inside a bottle thrown into the North Sea and found on a Swedish island 47 years later has been solved by BBC News Scotland.

Friends Ellinor Rosen Eriksson and Asa Nilsson found the bottle washed up earlier this year.

The paper, wet and already a little faded, was difficult to read, but they managed to decipher the name Addison Runcie, the year 1978 and an address in the town of Cullen, in northern Scotland.

It is now known that the message referred to fisherman James Addison Runcie, who was aboard the fishing boat Loraley and died in 1995.

The letter was written by a crewmate, Gavin Geddes, who was surprised to learn that the bottle had been found 47 years after he had thrown it overboard.

The women who discovered the message in Sweden said it was "fantastic" the mystery had been solved, with James' sister calling the revelation of the story "incredible".

Ellinor, 32, and Asa, 55, found the bottle on the west coast of Sweden in February.

"I was exploring the Väder Islands with my best friend Asa. We love looking for things on the beach, and that day we took a boat to Torso, the northernmost island in the archipelago," she said.

In the middle of one of the bushes on the island, Asa saw something unusual: a thick glass bottle sticking out of the ground. Inside was a damp, almost inedible paper.

They placed the paper in the sun to dry and were able to decipher some words and numbers written on it. The full date appeared to be "14.9.78".

They also managed to read a name and an address: "Addison Runcie, Seatown, Cullen, Banffshire, Scotland."

Ellinor said they were "completely amazed" to find a "real message in a bottle" and were keen to find out the story behind it. They posted about the letter on social media in the hope of gaining some insight.

After a more detailed analysis, they were able to decipher the letters "es" before the name Addison Runcie, as well as the number 115 at the beginning of the address.

BBC News Scotland has been able to confirm that James Addison Runcie lived at the same address in Seatown, Cullen, at the time, and that the letters "es" matched the end of the name James. An investigation has now begun.

Today, Jane Worby, 78, lives in the house. Upon hearing about the case, she said that "it was really cool to know a little more about the story."

"It stirs our imagination," he said of the message in the bottle. "It makes us want to do the same thing."

The former resident, James Runcie, for whom the message was intended, died in 1995, aged 67. He was known locally as Peem.

The story took an unexpected turn when we spoke to Gavin Geddes, one of the former crew members of the Loraley , which had left the port of Peterhaear.

"As soon as I saw the message I thought: it's definitely my handwriting," said Gavi, now 69.

He lives just a few miles from Cullen, in Rathven, and said he remembered writing the letter - he even compared it with other writing he had done to make sure it was his handwriting.

Gavin said he and other crew members threw "several bottles" overboard and that the intention was for one of them to be in honor of James Runcie.

"We threw one to him, and it's the only one that's been found in 47 years," he said.

"Now at least we have an answer."

Coincidentally, on the day the BBC was in Cullen, Runcie's sister Sandra Taylor, 83, was visiting the town. She was stunned to hear the story, and that the bottle had been found in Sweden.

"It's absolutely amazing!"

"To be bobbing in the sea for more than 40 years and then suddenly end up on a beach...it's unbelievable," he emphasized.

"The name and address confirm that it was for him, for sure. My whole family was into fishing, and for James, there was nothing but the sea. He was a fisherman all his life."

When asked what her older brother would have thought of all this, she replied:

"He would have burst out laughing, he would have found it hard to believe. He would have poured a drink and said, 'Cheers,'" he said.

In Sweden, Ellinor and Asa were overjoyed to learn that the author of the message had finally been discovered.

"It's a fantastic story," Ellinor said.

"Finding a letter in a bottle from someone so far away on a freezing February day near a remote island with your best friend is truly magical."

Ellinor explained that if she had known how the story would end, she would have tried to preserve the bottle too.

"I myself come from a family of fishermen and I am absolutely in love with the sea. I spend my time on the islands searching for treasures," she said.

"Where I live, we call this activity vraga , which means going in search of something lost or hidden, and discovering a story. And that's exactly what we did."

She added: "Asa and I would love to visit Cullen sometime, to talk about the bottle, the history and get to know this community and the beach. We are really excited about it all."