Kidnappers have succumbed to increasing public pressure and returned a cardboard cut-out of Lawrence Dallaglio to the Medway Messenger office.

The cardboard cut-out of the rugby star was left at our office on Friday, after a week of anonymous phone calls and emails to the newsdesk.

On Saturday, reporter Lynn Cox presented Danny Vidgen, owner of Rochester’s Who’D Ha Thought It pub, with his Lawrence cut-out.

He was then placed in his rightful position beside the television in time for England’s 14-13 defeat to Ireland in the Six Nations rugby competition.

Since the Medway Messenger ran a piece last week, the story of the kidnapped cut-out, which vanished from the pub last month, has been used in the national and regional Press.

Mr Vidgen said: “Although he is showing signs of wear and tear and sleep deprivation, he has come through this awful experience relatively unscathed.”

A note left with the cut-out said: “We have looked after him, but we had to return him because he eats too much.”