The 'guardian angel' mystery biker who donated up to £100,000 in gold and silver coins to churches and schools across England - because he wanted to 'do some good'

By AIDAN RADNEDGE, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and STEWART WHITTINGHAM, REPORTER Published: 01:42, 20 July 2026 | Updated: 01:50, 20 July 2026 School and church leaders have hailed a mystery biker who donated a treasure trail of gold and silver coins as their 'guardian angel' - as they revealed he said he wanted to 'do some good' with his wealth. One church in North Lancashire found a hoard worth £30,000 under the altar with the unknown benefactor just leaving a note from 'James, a servant of God'. But he is believed to be a leather-clad biker who has donated more than £100,000 to churches across England, as well as a handful of schools. The biker is thought to be newly religious and set out on a personal pilgrimage on his bike to visit several Church of England places of worship. He told one school teacher: 'I want to do some good with my money. I don't need it anymore. I now have God in my life. 'I want you to have the money.' His generosity has moved residents to call him a 'guardian angel' or even compared him to 'Robin Hood'. The biker actually made his trail of gold in July 2022, but much of the hidden horde only came to light in the last few months. He left three gold coins worth £4,500 at St Peter's Church, Quernmore. Your browser does not support iframes. Headteacher Fiona Richardson from Quernmore Primary School called the mystery donor a 'guardian angel' and said her school could not 'thank him enough' after coins worth £10,000 were left behind Churchwarden Mark Allsopp of St Thomas' Church in Garstang, near Preston, called the donation a 'real heartwarming gesture' Churchwarden Stephen Potter described them as 'divine intervention' netting the church £4,500. He said: 'There is no doubt it did help us with our finances that year - we were tremendously grateful. 'A gift like that always seems to come at the right time, when we feel we're struggling. It is as if God suddenly provides just when we need it.' The biker was said to be so touched by the idyllic location of the church that he also left ten gold coins worth £10,000 in the area. Quernmore Primary School headteacher Fiona Richardson, 55, said: 'He was on his bike and then came into the school. 'I was on a school trip at the time but he told another teacher that he loved the fact that the school was so close to the church. 'He loved the location and said it was inspiring. 'So he left the coins there. We were amazed but didn't really know what to do with them or whether they were real. 'However the police told us that everything was above board. 'We sold them and the money has made a real difference to the school as we bought large computer teaching boards for the classroom. 'He's like our guardian angel - I can't thank him enough.' She added: 'He didn't want any recognition and didn't want anyone to know who he was. 'He said he just wanted to do some good with his job. He was obviously just going round on his bike to different churches.' The mystery biker left nine coins worth £30,000 and a note written on Salvation Army-headed notepaper which was dated July 16 2022, at St Wilfrid's Church in Melling, near Lancaster Among the beneficiaries has been Holy Trinity Church in Casterton, Lancashire Also able to cash in on the coins is St Mary's in Kirkby Lonsdale Rev Jane Lee of 14th Century St Wilfrid's Church in Melling, near Lancaster, found nine gold Britannia coins worth nearly £30,000 hidden under the altar during this year's Easter The school's administrator Jess Moss, 41, said: 'I was working at another school and he also came in and left another 10 coins there. 'Everyone was stunned. He told people that he'd found God.' The biker had first gone to St Thomas' Church in Garstang, near Preston. He had left three coins worth £4,293. Church warden Mark Allsopp, 66, said: 'We couldn't believe it. We had no idea who he was but it was an amazing gesture. 'At first we didn't know what to do with it. We contacted the police first to see if they were kosher. 'It's a real heart-warming gesture that you don't see a lot of.' The biker also left five coins at St Margaret's, Hornby, worth almost £8,000. The Rev Lucie Lunn said the community had 'absolutely no idea' who the anonymous donor might be. She said: 'It is hard, because you want to say thank you but there is also something perfectly faithful to give without looking for thanks. It was an uplift for the church. 'One of the greatest myths is that the church is rich – in rural areas parishes don't have reserves to manage their buildings and they have tiny populations.' Churchwarden Tom Rothwell described feeling 'extremely grateful', adding: 'It has helped tremendously and enabled us to do a lot on our roof – though there is more to do. The retired lecturer, 72, added: 'We thought it might be a gentleman who used to come with his mother for afternoon tea on Sunday, but it is guesswork.' His generosity has stunned local residents. Retired Jim Glen, 62, said: 'I'm stunned at the man's generosity. He's like a modern day Robin Hood. 'You just don't come across things like this nowadays. It really warms your heart.' The vicar of 14th Century St Wilfrid's Church in Melling, near Lancaster, found nine gold Britannia coins worth nearly £30,000 hidden under the altar at this year's Easter, which could have been left there as long ago as 2022. But it was only found in a bag on Good Friday. St Wilfrid's was struggling to keep going with a bill of £750,000 for repairs. Rev Jane Lee, 54, told the BBC: 'We just burst into tears when we saw it. It was like a miracle because it's so desperately needed for the church.' The mystery biker had also left a note written on Salvation Army-headed notepaper which was dated July 16 2022. It read: 'Hi there, I'd like to donate these nine gold Britannias to Melling Church – the plastic bag identifies a bullion realtor. 'James, a servant of the Living God.' Just up the road, another hoard of gold and silver coins was discovered in a church. Warden Sue Hunter caught sight over the bag resting behind a cross on the altar at St John the Baptist Church in Tunstall, as she tidied up after a wedding. She then rushed outside to try and flag down the bride and bridegroom, but they knew nothing of the hidden treasure. The seven silver coins and one gold Britannia coin, worth around £3,500, had been left in a plastic bag with the name of a bullion dealer in Blackpool. Ms Hunter described the finding as 'a mystery'. She locked the coins in a safe, anticipating the rightful owners turning up. Nick Gillibrand, a fellow churchwarden at St John's in Tunstall, said: 'It is a wonderful thing whoever has done this.' He told of the money going towards repairs for the Grade-I listed church's medieval Flemish stained glass windows. Mr Gillibrand, a 77-year-old architect, added: 'They are in bad condition - it is going to cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.' A mysterious Good Samaritan has been donating a trail of gold and silver coins to stunned churches across England Coins are also thought to have been bestowed on St Thomas' in Garstang Meanwhile at Holy Trinity Church in Casterton, Lancashire, three coins since valued at £10,000 were discovered - with church leaders pondering for several years what to do with them before deciding to cash in. The church's current treasurer Simon Drakeford told the Daily Mail how welcome it was to get an unexpected bonus for beleaguered church finances. He said: 'A man came in and handed over these coins in person to the then-vicar. They were sat on for a few years before the church decided to sell them last year. It's still ongoing. 'Churches of all denominations are struggling with congregations - funding is an issue, so it's obviously helpful towards sustaining the church.' Three 'brand new' gold coins were also reportedly handed over to the rector at St Mary's in Kirkby Lonsdale. Former local parish council treasurer Robert Cass was previously quoted as saying how the donor 'actually came to the rectory and handed it over' while saying 'something like, "I don't need these"'. The two churches have teamed up and hope to sell all six for up to £20,000. Coins are also thought to have been bestowed on St Paul's Church in Caton-with-Littledale and St Thomas' in Garstang. The latter told in its 2022 annual report of an 'anonymous gift of three gold coins' which later went on sale and recouped £4,293.