An arts inspired event in association with the Mayor of London went awry when two of the 20 hats placed on London statues went missing - with one being stolen and another "disabled" by a Westminster counil street warden.
Hatwalk is part of London Mayor Boris Johnson's bid to encourage people to research and learn about dozens of sculptures of famous figures in the capital, curated by Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy as part of the London 2012 festival.
But two of the headpieces - one on Beau Brummell's statue on Jermyn Street and another on the Shakespeare statue in Leicester Square - were missing on Monday, with CCTV showing three youths stealing the baseball hat from the bard's monument in the middle of the night.
A hatless Beau Brummell's statue on Jermyn Street
The turban on Jermyn Street was another story, with Westminster City Council denying reports that cleaners had removed the hat and instead blaming a malfunctioning alarm.
“Our street cleaners and wardens have been fully briefed about the Hatwalk display around central London and understand they need to leave the hats in place – however in the case of the Beau Brummell statue, the hat’s alarm had malfunctioned and was continuously sounding, causing a nuisance to surrounding local businesses.
"One of our street wardens received complaints from several businesses about the noise and the hat was sadly damaged while he was attempting to disable the alarm. We understand the hat is currently being repaired,” a Westminster Council spokesperson said.
Londoners didn't seem to mind the missing masterpieces, however, with many tweeting about how much they loved the statues.
Boris Johnson, speaking on Monday, heralded the initiative saying the "imagination of London's millinery talent is feted worldwide."
He added: "I can't think of a better way to celebrate the heritage of British millinery and its contribution to our fair city by dressing our most noble of statues, including our most heroic son, Nelson."
The hats will be auctioned off to raise money for the Mayor's Fund for good causes.
Statues including Lord Nelson and Sir Winston Churchill's were given new hats created by top designers - take a look through some of the best in our gallery below.
Hatwalk is part of Surprises, a series of pop-up performances staged around London in familiar and unusual places. Other events include pop-up Shakespeare at The Globe Theatre, London, and a life-size inflatable replica of Stonehenge by Jeremy Deller, which is currently touring the capital.