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A man dressed as Santa Claus had to be rescued from the top of Glasgow's Duke of Wellington statue by a cherry picker earlier today.

In this video the man wearing a Father Christmas costume celebrates his rescue punching his hands into the air.

Filmed by a passerby close to Glasgow's George Square, the footage captures the moment a rescuer uses the elevated work platform to help the man who seems to have been carried away with festive spirit.

According to police the man had arranged for the cherry picker to put him on the statue and bring him back down again as part of a publicity stunt.

He was spoken to at the scene after the incident around midday and let go.

The Duke of Wellington statue has long been a thorn in the side of the city council thanks to a long-standing tradition of placing a traffic cone on top of its head.

(Image: Twitter)

Two years ago Glasgow City Council announced plans to raise the plinth as part of a £65,000 project to refurbish the monument outside the Gallery of Modern Art.

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But it was forced to shelve the plan after the public reacted furiously insisting the cone is a tourist attraction and helps to demonstrate the city's sense of humour.

(Image: Twitter)

Each year taxpayer's are forced to fork out £10,000 for the cost of removing the cone 100 times a year - now Santa has added to that total with this stunt.