Man locked in bookshop goes on Twitter for help

A tourist who became a Twitter sensation after he was locked inside a closed London bookshop for two hours declared "it feels good to be free".

David Willis had been browsing in Waterstones in Trafalgar Square on Thursday night, but went downstairs shortly after 9pm to find the lights out and the shop deserted.

This is me locked inside a waterstones bookstore in London. I was upstairs for 15 minutes and came… http://t.co/EefA1antuG

— David Willis (@DWill_) October 16, 2014

Despite calls to the shop’s security and police, he spent two hours trapped inside the darkened store — and was only rescued when he used Twitter to alert the world to his predicament.

Hi @Waterstones I've been locked inside of your Trafalgar Square bookstore for 2 hours now. Please let me out.

— David Willis (@DWill_) October 16, 2014

Mr Willis, from Texas in the United States, told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “I’m very tired, I did not sleep much last night but it feels good to be free.”

He said he had popped in to the bookshop just before 9pm, not realising it was about to close, and strolled past employees as he went upstairs to use the internet.

Around 15 minutes later he got up to leave, but when he walked downstairs it was completely dark and the door was locked. Right when I came downstairs I saw I had been locked in and I went to the door, tried to open it, the alarm went off. The alarm sounded in Trafalgar Square for probably 20 or 25 minutes.

“The phone rang after about ten minutes or so. It was a security guard and I talked to him and I thought, you know, I’ll be out of here in a few minutes. And a little more time went by. I finally said I’m going to talk to the police, I talked to them, and I thought I would get out from the police very soon.

“Then I just kept waiting and waiting, so eventually I went to social media.”

He posted a picture of himself behind shutters inside the darkened store with the message: “This is me locked inside a Waterstones bookstore in London.

“I was upstairs for 15 minutes and came down to all the lights out and door locked. Been here over an hour now. Supposedly someone is on their way.”

In a later post which was retweeted by more than 7,000 people, he wrote: “Hi Waterstones, I’ve been locked inside of your Trafalgar Square bookstore for two hours now. Please let me out.”

When he was finally released, he wrote: “I’m free.”

I'm free

— David Willis (@DWill_) October 16, 2014

Waterstones posted a message on its Twitter feed saying: “We’re pleased to announce that [Mr Willis] is a free man once more. Thanks for your concern and tweets.”

We're pleased to announce that @DWill_ is a free man once more. Thanks for your concern and tweets!

— Waterstones (@Waterstones) October 16, 2014

Waterstones posted a blog on its website entitled: ‘What to read when you’ve two hours on your hands...and you are locked in a bookshop.’

What to read when you’ve two hours on your hands… and are locked in a bookshop. http://t.co/vA1oB4fDKh pic.twitter.com/80MDGLwfiR

— Waterstones (@Waterstones) October 17, 2014