From creating popcorn sculptures to impersonating Santa and covering an entire shop in wrapping paper, a naughty elf will be making mischief at a shopping centre in the lead-up to Christmas.

Romford Recorder: It's all play and no work for this elfIt's all play and no work for this elf (Image: Archant)

Shoppers will be noticing strange things occurring at the Mercury Mall, Mercury Gardens, Romford, for the next month, as Elfie Shelfie makes his mark on the town centre.

Deputy manager Spencer Hawken said: “We wanted to bring a bit of fun to the mall by introducing Elfie, someone who is cheeky and mischievous, but with a good heart.

“It’s going to be very exciting to see what he gets up to!”

The story says that in the land of elves, Elfie is labelled as the “bad sheep” by everyone around him, getting everything wrong from struggling to tell the difference between what it is to be naughty and to be nice, to understanding the simplest of tasks like how to dress himself.

But everything he does is with good intentions.

This year, while the rest of his fellow elves are sent on special missions throughout the world to help out their boss Santa, Elfie is left with nowhere to go and somehow ends up at the Mercury Mall.

Videos of his “Laurel and Hardy” style adventures will be uploaded in the weeks to come onto the Mercury Mall’s YouTube channel.

Shoppers will also have the chance to win a variety of prizes, including tickets for flicks at the Premiere Cinema.

In yesterday’s video (Thurs), Elfie was seen purchasing 10 gift vouchers from toy shop The Entertainer, with the idea of hiding them among presents in Santa’s Grotto.

“We can’t wait to see people’s reactions,” said Spencer.

“This year, Elfie is going to deliver his combination of naughty and nice upon the good people of Romford.”

To watch the videos, visit bit.ly/2gJbQPz.