Owner of Hitler house in the dark until German message

THE owner of the celebrated "Hitler house" has revealed how hefirst heard it had become an internet sensation for resembling theFuhrer - in a phone call from Germany.

Pictures of the uncanny end-of-terrace property in Swansea, SouthWales, have attracted global attention.

Tens of thousands of people have now discovered the Fuhrer'sdistinctive facial features unintentionally recreated in masonry.

Comedian Jimmy Carr was so astounded he posted the picture on hisTwitter account and saw it go on to entertain thousands.

But while the celebrity of the otherwise unassuming buildingspread as far as Australia, its owner remained unenlightened.

Clive Davies, 60, was oblivious to the fuss caused by the passer-by who first noticed the resemblance and decided to post aphotograph online.

The image's global reach finally hit home when his son spottedthe picture as he read a newspaper's website on the internet.

Guy Davies, a warrant officer with the 7th Signals Regiment, wassitting in front of a computer in Kabul, Afghanistan, at the time.

He recognised the house as a property in Port Tennant, Swansea,which had been in his family for more than half a century.

He immediately contacted his wife Alison at their home on theBritish military base in Wildenrath, Germany.

She then called her father-in-law in Swansea and belatedly passedon news which had already been around the world.

"I have never noticed any similarity before and most people whopass by are so close they probably never notice," Mr Davies told theSouth Wales Evening Post.

"Some people say they can see images of Jesus Christ on itemssuch as toast, and I suppose it is just a variation on a theme.

"I don't really think it looks like Hitler."