Fact #141580

George Wilder, said to be New Zealand's greatest-ever prison escaper, makes the first of his daring escapes by scaling the 10m high wall of New Plymouth Prison. He will remain at liberty for 65 days, during which he will capture the attention of the New Zealand public when newspapers report several hair-raising escapes from the officers tasked with his capture. The Howard Morrison Quartet will be inspired by Wilder's exploits to write their controversial hit song The Wild(er) New Zealand Boy, a parody of the folk song The Wild Colonial Boy. Despite being banned by New Zealand's state owned broadcasters, The Wild(er) New Zealand Boy will go immediately to No1 in the charts and remain on top for ten weeks.