Once upon a time there was a man and a woman who longed for a child, but no such luck was theirs and they remained childless.  Through the window of their simple cottage they could see their neighbour's garden, abundant with vegetables, fruit, flowers and herbs.  The garden was surrounded by a high wall and no-one dared scale it, partly because the garden belonged to a wicked witch and partly because no-one had a ladder tall enough to reach. One day the woman was standing at the upstairs window, looking longingly at the lush green lettuces growing in the verdant garden, when her husband asked her what was the matter.  She replied that she must have some of the lettuce: it was her heart's desire if she was not to have the child she wanted so much.

What's A Man to Do?

The man went online and ordered a ladder.  He was not sure what sort of ladder he would need, as he not only needed to get up the wall, but also climb down into the garden and get back again.  After consultation with the experts at Midland Ladders he decided that a value for money combination ladder would be best and opted for the Youngman 3 metre combination ladder, as he would be able to easily scale the 15 foot wall around the garden and get back down the other side. The man set up his new ladder the next evening (because he got free next day delivery) and set about getting his wife some of the delicious lettuce.  But when he got into the garden, the wicked witch discovered him and threatened to kill him.  He bravely answered her, explaining that his wife was so full of desire for the lettuce that he feared she may die if she did not get it. The witch relented and told the man he must give her his first-born daughter in return for the lettuce.  She also took the ladder, to stop him getting back in and also because it was a really nice ladder.

What Happened to The Stolen Ladder?

When the day came that the couple bore a daughter, the wicked witch appeared and stole her straight away, much to the dismay of the parents.  The witch locked her in a tall tower deep in the woods, far far away from anyone who would ever find her. There was no door and no stairway in this tower, only a small window through which the wicked witch could climb.  She used the stolen ladder (kept securely fastened to the side of the tower with a pair of heavy duty locking ladder brackets)  to reach the girl and bring her food.  But she would not let the girl out of the tower. As time passed, Rapunzel (for that was the girl's name) sang to herself and braided her long hair, unaware that a charming prince had been listening to her for several weeks and had been trying to get up to the window, all to no avail.  He would see the wicked witch unlock the ladder, climb up it, come back down and secure it to the tower again, but try as he might, he could not get the ladder off the wall.  He decided one day to purchase an escape ladder for Rapunzel, which he could throw up on a rope and then she could be rescued. The charming prince purchased a ProUser escape ladder, knowing Rapunzel could easily attach it to the windowsill and climb down.  He went to the tower late at night and called up to Rapunzel, telling her that he had a gift for her to help her escape.  At first she was startled to hear an unfamiliar voice, but decided to let down her hair, for the prince to tie her gift to (as he had forgotten the rope.  Lucky she had such long hair!).  She pulled up the ladder and quickly realised she could escape.  Deploying the escape ladder was easy and she climbed down and into the waiting arms of the prince, who carried her off into the sunset to live happily ever after. At first, the wicked witch was furious when she saw what had happened. But then, seeing that she had done wrong by her neighbours and their daughter, she vowed never to lock anyone in that tower again. Instead she took the combination ladder with her to give her (now elderly) neighbours a way into her garden so they could help themselves to her lettuces.