wow, that's a great story! There was a similar thing on on our Antiques Roadshow back in 1987 whereby a painting turned out to be by the great, but troubled Victorian painter Richard Dadd (best known for "The Fairy Feller's Master-stroke"). The work on the show was apparently painted during his incareration in Bedlam following the murder of his father. It's one of those paintings where reproductions never capture the beauty of the colours somehow, but here it is:
http://www.leicestergalleries.com/art-and-antiques/detail/11795

I'm looking forward to seeing the lost Breughel too :)