DeLorean’s letter arrives in Gilesgate, Durham, 40 years late

But they were shocked to realize they were having their very own Back to the Future moment – as the letter was real and had surfaced forty years late.

Peter Wilson, 69, received a message from his wife Caroline later in the day, saying a strange letter had arrived in the mailbox claiming that an original US sports car could be bought for a modest fee of £13,530 could be sent.

Get the latest news, sport and entertainment straight to your device by subscribing to The Northern Echo Here.

Peter said: “Caroline told me she believed some sort of marketing scam had been posted through the door, but when I took a look it was definitely real.”

The letter, dated September 17, 1981, arrived in Durham on September 4, 42 years after it was first addressed.

“The letter is from Belfast-based DeLorean Motor Company, which is advertising one of their cars for £13,000, but actually you would have a car come all the way from Texas.

Read more: Dogs rescued after dramatic fall from pothole in Arncliffe

The iconic two-seat gullwing sports car rose to fame in the 1980s as Marty McFly’s time-travelling car in Back to the Future.

But by the time the film was released in 1985, the DeLorean Motor Company had already gone under and was dissolved in 1982. Designed in Italy and manufactured in Ireland, the cars were only produced in 1981 and 1982.

The Wilsons, who live in the Gilesgate area of ​​Durham, were confused but delighted by the unexpected arrival of the post.

Read more: Man shot dead and 24-year-old arrested on Tilery Estate in Norton

Peter said: “The man the letter is addressed to is a few owners ahead of us, even though we have lived here for decades.

“You do ask yourself: Where has the letter been all these years? It’s all faded and browned and looks like it was left out somewhere.

“Why anyone would bother paying the postage I don’t know – it was obviously dug up when someone had an eviction.

Continue reading:

Peter, a bit of a car enthusiast himself, said finding the letter “isn’t something that happens every day.”

“Getting something good in the mail is pretty rare these days – it’s all just bills or done through social media. Glad it arrived in our mailbox!”