A CHESHIRE woman has knitted over 1,000 poppies for a spectacular Remembrance Day display in the village of Great Barrow, near Chester.

Marjorie Rigby, 89, from Frodsham started knitting poppies in January and ten months later has completed 1,200 in time for Remembrance Day. Her daughter Sue Weaver then sewed 1,000 of the individual, hand knitted poppies onto ribbons which were assembled by villagers into an eight foot high display in the heart of the village.

Sue said: "Mum needed a project, and she is an amazing knitter - once she started she was like Forrest Gump, she just kept going!"

Marjorie's father and father in law both served in the First World War and as a child she remembers her parents looking after evacuee children from Manchester and Liverpool at their small holding in Kingsley during the Second World War.

Chester and District Standard: Members of Great Barrow's Poppy Team stand in front of the finished display.Members of Great Barrow's Poppy Team stand in front of the finished display. (Image: Newsquest)

Twenty Barrow residents, who died in the two world wars are commemorated on the Village War Memorial and another twenty civilians were tragically killed in November 1940 when a bomb landed on Barrowmore Hall on the outskirts of the village.

Barrow Parish Councillor Andy Porter said: "The poppies have attracted lots of attention, even the BBC! They are a wonderful way to remember the sacrifices of previous generations and we look forward to continuing to put them up in future years as part of our Remembrance Day commemorations. Thank you Marjorie!"

Marjorie commented on seeing the completed display: "I feel both proud and emotional - every single stitch was made with love."

Next year Marjorie is already planning to knit many more poppies to raise funds for the British Legion.