Town transformed into Harry Potter wonderland

Knitted Harry Potter characters have popped up on trees, benches and post boxes, giving a town a magical makeover.

The Ellesmere Yarn Bombers are behind the transformation as a treat for holidaymakers visiting the Shropshire town this summer.

Woolly depictions of Hagrid, Dobby, Moaning Myrtle and the boy wizard himself are among the creations.

It coincides with the main, titular character's birthday, 31 July.

Alison Utting, one of the organisers, said: "Bringing joy has always been our absolute aim - if somebody walks past and [the creations] make people smile, then we've achieved what we've wanted to achieve.

"And when you put them up and drive through the town and you see people having their photos taken by them, it's amazing, as we're all fiercely proud of our town and hope the yarnbombing draws more people to Ellesmere."

The 56-year-old said the inspiration for the work came from patterns online, as well as "from each other", as the creatives often swapped ideas and tips.

Ms Utting added that it was "nice" to see how the group had grown since its inception.

The group has been decorating Ellesmere with its craftwork since 2018 following the death of one of the group's founders the year before.

The work has garnered fans across the globe.

"We've had people commenting from Australia and in America because people have been sharing pictures of them online," Ms Utting said.

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