French property owners may want to keep their possessions in check when travelling by Eurostar, it would seem.

Forgetful passengers, which no doubt include some heading to the country to hunt for French property or keep tabs on their investment, are leaving everything from guide books to underwear on the famous train, it has been claimed.

Lesley Retallack, head of press at Eurostar, said: "We’ve had all sorts of things – false teeth, zimmer frames, crutches; […] people have forgotten their cheeses, their bread, underwear, coats.

"Hats, umbrellas, and books are the other big thing […] sometimes they are guidebooks and maps."

Of course, the information about popular tourist destinations offered by a guidebook could make useful Eurostar reading for the French property seeker looking to rent it out as holiday accommodation.

Eurostar offers French property owners and other travellers a high speed railway passenger service connecting London with Paris and Brussels.