20 Pound Ploughman: Likely still out there?

[Series B notes]

In the Central Bank's report in 1984, 1 20 pound Ploughman was recorded as outstanding. Think it still exists? Where might it be? What might have happened to it?

[Mac]

There were no Ploughman £20 note outstanding by 1984.
The Central Bank of Ireland released the amount of each denomination outstanding in 1984, which was published in Irish Numismatics. The number of notes outstanding for each denomination were as follows:
£1, n=57497
£5, n=6559
£10, n=1506

All £20, £50, £100 notes were accounted for by then.

[Series B notes]

Odd. Somewhere, it said one is still out there.

[Mac]

That was back in th 1970s, I believe.

[ThePloughman]

This was the stuff of legend back then. It was the 1984 central bank info in Irish Numismatics that killed off the rumour. Derek Young was great at digging up info. It's a pity that the magazine is not still going. There was much more of a buzz in Irish numismatic collecting back in those days.

[DOC]

The rumour of an outstanding £20 Ploughman note probably originates from an earlier Central Bank of Ireland Annual Report. An extract from the 1967 report, published by the Belfast News-Letter, indicates that there was one £20 consolidated note outstanding at this time. As the Central Bank confirmed no outstanding £20 consolidated notes in 1984, this suggests that the last £20 consolidated note was cashed in between 1967 and 1984.

[Mac]

As far as I recall, the Central Bank of Ireland Annual records show the last £20 note being redeemed in the early 1970s. I'll try and look this up!

[ThePloughman]

I recall chatter about this 20 in the 1970s. Rumor had it that there was one out there.