'Spooky' humanoid sculptures appear near former steelworks

Residents in a village were left baffled after a group of mysterious life-sized figures appeared overnight in a field, and vanished just as suddenly.

Around 15 human-shaped casts were spotted on Saturday near the former Brymbo Steelworks in Wrexham.

There was no warning they were coming and no explanation as to why they had been placed there, prompting confusion, curiosity and a flurry of speculation among locals.

Jess Jones posted on Facebook: "Can someone else vouch for this so I don't sound mad. Drove past the Brymbo Steelworks earlier and the field opposite had loads of silver 'statues' dotted around.

"Just drove past now and they're gone and my husband thinks I'm going mad when I explained what I saw. What were they?!"

Some described the scene as "spooky" and "freaky", comparing it to an episode of Doctor Who and questioning whether aliens had landed.

"It was very creepy," one local said. "I've never seen anything like it before."

Sheryl Bishop and Holly Jones also stopped to take pictures. "I thought I was going mad at first, I had to stop to take a photo," said Holly.

The mystery was later explained as part of One Man Army, a travelling sculptural installation by Cheshire-based artist Colin Spofforth.

The project explores Britain's lost industrial and social heritage by temporarily placing repeated casts of a single, solemn figure in locations shaped by work and industry.

Each installation is filmed and shared on social media before moving on, leaving behind images and conversations in the communities it visits.

The figures were positioned opposite the former steelworks, a site built in 1796 that once employed around 2,500 people at its peak.

Steel production came to an end there in 1990, when 1,100 workers lost their jobs, marking the closure of a major part of the area's industrial history.

Lisa Rumsey, who lives in Brymbo, said she came across Colin and his son as they were installing the work, describing it as "something really special".

"The work didn't just fill the space, it lifted it, adding new meaning to the surroundings and tying beautifully into the story of Stori Brymbo".

Spofforth has previously created the life-size statue of Owain Glyndwr, erected in Corwen, Denbighshire, in 2007, and his work can also be found across the UK and internationally.

"My work explores that connection between people and place, how art sparks belonging, memory, and curiosity," a statement on his website reads.