Famous Yousuf Karsh Portrait of Sir Winston Churchill Stolen From Château Laurier

The iconic 1941 photograph of Winston Churchill taken by legendary photographer Yousuf Karsh in the Speaker of the House of Commons' chambers, on July 14, 2009. The Canadian Press/Fred Chartrand

It sounds like a caper from a movie: a thief seems to have swapped out the famous portrait of a scowling Sir Winston Churchill, photographed by Yousuf Karsh in 1941, with a signed copy.

A staff member at Ottawa’s Château Laurier noticed on Friday that the frame in the Reading Lounge wasn’t hanging properly and didn’t look the same as the others in the collection. An inspection revealed the photo in the frame was not the original, but it is not clear how long the copy has been hanging.