Joseph Maher’s instrument was left on a Thameslink train travelling towards Cambridge on Friday 10 April, and was located at Brighton station later that day
A violinist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) has been reunited with his missing instrument that he left on a train last week.
Joseph Maher, a long‑serving LPO member since 1986, believed his 20th‑century Paul Jocelyn violin had been stolen after he inadvertently left it in an overhead rack on the 9:01 Thameslink service from Haywards Heath to Cambridge on Friday 10 April, disembarking without it at Blackfriars.
Inside the case were two bows; a Hill bow, gold‑mounted with a fleur‑de‑lys, and a silver‑mounted Martin.
Initial searches failed to locate the instrument, but Thameslink later confirmed that a passenger assistant spotted the violin case on the same train at Brighton station later that morning.
The connection was made after the staff member read a article reporting the suspected theft, leading to Maher being reunited with the violin on Tuesday 14 April.
Maher, who lives in Haywards Heath, said replacing the instrument would have cost around £15,000. A colleague loaned Maher a violin in the interim, enabling him to perform in a concert on the day his own instrument went missing.
Maher expressed relief and gratitude at the violin’s safe return, having earlier said he believed there was a ‘reasonable chance’ it might be recovered.
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