Mystery Naked Hiker Uncovered...

Guardian readers can rest easy in their beds with the news that the naked hiker frequenting North Yorkshire has, erm, revealed all to Channel 4.

The unclothed perambulator is none other than Steve Gough, the man arrested by police in Cornwall as he began his naked attempt on the Lands End to John o'Groats walk. Since then Gough, 44, has apparently been 'taken in' by police some ten times, which has disrupted his walk, as you can imagine.

According to today's naked rambling-obsessed Grauniad, he's now heading back to the Dales to resume his hike. The good (?) news is that while he's been warned by North Yorkshire police, no-one has submitted a complaint, so no further action has been taken.

For a more detailed understanding of Gough's motivation, you can see his web page where he states that his walk is: 'Both a celebration of the human body and a campaign to enlighten the public, as well as the authorities that govern us, that the freedom to go naked in public is a basic human right.'

Stop Press

Ooops, seems that the fella's been arrested after all by Scottish police. See this story. Or this one on the BBCi site complete with photo featuring strategically placed map... Or this in the Times complete with a list of handy links to naturist web sites.

Industry Panic

Meanwhile OM can exclusively report that the outdoors industry is in a state of panic over fears that the new popularity of naked rambling combined with forecasts of global warming resulting in 8 degree C temperature rises could mean the end of outdoors clothing as we know it.

An unnamed mystery industry figure told OM: 'This man must be stopped. The future of the layering system is at stake... The whole thing is even worse than soft shell, though arguably more interesting to look at.'