Yarn display will depict life in Britain during WW2

The display depicts life in Britain during World War Two

An 80m-long (262ft) yarn exhibition depicting life in Britain during World War Two is expected to attract thousands of people to Southwell.

The King's Speech, D-Day and the Blitz will all be retold with miniature knitted and crocheted models as part of The Longest Yarn 2: Britain at War, at Southwell Minster, Nottinghamshire.

The exhibition, which starts on Wednesday and runs until 27 September, follows on from last year's The Longest Yarn display, which was attended by about 30,000 visitors at the Minster.

The display has been created with the help of about 250 crafters.

Between 10,000 and 15,000 people are expected to see the display

The Longest Yarn 2 consists of 80 panels of "wool art", each 1m (3.2ft) long.

It focuses on what life was like in Britain between the declaration of war on 3 September 1939, to VE Day on 8 May 1945.

The bombing of major cities, the Home Guard, rationing and the Women's Land Army are all documented in the display.

Glenn Formoy, head of events at Southwell Minster, said between 10,000 and 15,000 people were expected to visit the "UK premiere" of the display.

"We are the first place that is going to have all 80 panels," he said.

"It's absolutely incredible, the detail in the figures.

"You can see insignias on their uniforms, even if they are the size of a fingernail."

The display features tiny detailed figurines, including of those who served in the Home Guard

He added: "I know speaking to a lot of the shop owners [in Southwell] it was their busiest period they had in the whole year, so it's great for the local economy."

The exhibition also features The Gang - eight life-size representatives of "all the services that saved Britain in its hour of need, from a land girl to a Spitfire pilot".

Tansy Forster, the mastermind behind The Longest Yarn, designs each of the panels, while crafters around the country help pull the display together through countless hours of knitting and crocheting.

Ms Forster said about 2,500 hours of work had gone into creating one of the life-sized models.

"Because we're in the medium of wool, and it's knitted and crocheted, people don't even expect that that could be done by ordinary housewives," she said.

"Somehow it resonates with people and it brings the whole thing to life."