Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Southport Sockman

:The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep‎__EXPECTED_UNCONNECTED_PAGE__. Doczilla _{Ohhhhhh, no!} 22:12, 30 June 2024 (UTC)

=[[:Southport Sockman]]=

:{{la|1=Southport Sockman}} – (View AfDView log | edits since nomination)

:({{Find sources AFD|title=Southport Sockman}})

Fails WP:GNG, and probably WP:BLP1E and WP:NCRIME. Mdann52 (talk) 14:56, 16 June 2024 (UTC)

Note: This discussion has been included in the deletion sorting lists for the following topics: Crime and England. Spiderone^{(Talk to Spider)} 15:04, 16 June 2024 (UTC)
Delete. Mildly amusing anecdote, but that doesn't make it notable. Athel cb (talk) 15:06, 16 June 2024 (UTC)
:it's very notable locally and across merseyside and lancashire 31.94.28.139 (talk) 12:49, 20 June 2024 (UTC)
Leaning keep on this one, though the article really does need to pull it's socks up. This was not a single incident, but rather a spree of incidents over several years - a lot of socks. Furthermore, although the court case is reported to have been in 1998 there does appear to be WP:SUSTAINED coverage of the UK-based "sockmen", including: coverage from Canada from 1996 ([https://access-newspaperarchive-com.wikipedialibrary.idm.oclc.org/ca/alberta/medicine-hat/medicine-hat-news/1996/06-04/page-34 Medicine Hat News]), a 2009 article ([https://www.southportvisiter.co.uk/news/nostalgia/curious-case-pairs-obsession-socks-6623691]), a film produced in 2015/16 ([https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/film-bizarre-southport-sockmen-tale-10367436 Liverpool Echo], [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5827348/ IMDb], [https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/foot-fetish-perverts-who-swindled-5695890 Mirror]), a 2017 book ([https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Sock/Ol0sDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Steven+Bain+Steven+Gawthrop&pg=PA62&printsec=frontcover]), a Connecticut radio show in 2020 ([https://www.ctpublic.org/arts-and-culture/2020-10-20/you-can-keep-your-socks-on]), and a retrospective article in 2021 ([https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/bizarre-case-men-conned-socks-24418821 Daily Record]). Coverage could be better, but does appear to be much more than "breaking news". ResonantDis_tortion 18:34, 17 June 2024 (UTC)
:Comment - I have reverted the vandalism where an IP had added a third name to the perpetrators, and also added some of the above refs as citations within the article. ResonantDis_tortion 19:08, 17 June 2024 (UTC)
::I added an 'In popular culture' section to the article with talks about the film and book adaptations, with can help enforce its WP:N. Mjks28 (talk) 11:21, 25 June 2024 (UTC)

{{resize|91%|Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.}}
Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, Liz ^{Read! Talk!} 17:19, 23 June 2024 (UTC)

Keep: Events described in article are notable, as they have inspired multiple media products (per @ResonantDistortion's argument above, such as a film). Article could, however, benefit from some rewording/restructuring, and add a section that could cover its media adaptations. —Mjks28 (talk) 05:52, 24 June 2024 (UTC)
Keep oh wow, I remember this happening, some of my friends were 'victims'. Anyway, I've added some extra detail with contemporaneous references. Orange sticker (talk) 23:30, 27 June 2024 (UTC)

:The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.