300 ninja yarnbombers transform Thirsk before Tour de Yorkshire

Three hundred ninja yarnbombers, aged one to 90, have contributed knitted creations which appeared in Thirsk overnight ahead of next weekend’s Tour de Yorkshire.

A group of Thirsk Yarnbombers gathered in dark clothing and black masks or face paint last night with knitted items made from 750 balls of wool.

The result is hundreds of metres of bunting, decorated trees, bollards, benches and fences, life size people and animals made from wool and specially crafted door hangers for the town’s 150 shops, as well as decorated bicycles.

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According to the Yorkshire Post a huge banner reading “Thirsk Yarnbombers Support the Tour de Yorkshire” is being displayed near Thirsk and Northallerton Golf Club and a statue of James Herriot at the World of James Herriot museum has been given a knitted birthday cake and bright pink leg warmers.

Woolly items were contributed from around the world after one of the organisers started a Facebook page, which had 150 members within a fortnight.

Ann Akers, who set up the group with Samantha Spence, said the initiative had brought the community together.

Ms Akers, 58, told the Post: ““Churches, the WI, schools, childminders and old people’s homes have all got involved. Our youngest is one and the oldest is 97. We’ve had people with dementia, people with disabilities and people who suffer quite badly from depression. It’s just lifted people.

“It’s been fantastic. I can’t believe the support that’s been given to us.

“The whole of Thirsk has pulled together.”

Akers insisted the party of decorators wore black masks or face paint, but that they put pom poms on their clothes so police wouldn’t mistake them for burglars.

The Tour de Yorkshire starts on Friday with a 184 mile route from Beverley to Settle, with a 135.5km stage from Otley to Doncaster on Saturday. The race passes through Thirsk on Sunday on its 196km final stage from Middlesbrough to Scarborough.

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Yarn bombing is a popular pursuit practised around the world, with anything from bollards in Burnham on Sea to bike racks in Belgium bedecked with woollen creations, guerrilla style.