'Awesome' warrior queen Boudicca seen in Norfolk clouds

"It looked like the wind was blowing her hair behind her and she was off on the rampage - I thought, that's Boudicca," said the photographer

A photograph of a cloud formation resembling the East Anglian warrior queen Boudicca has been described as "awesome", by a weather expert.

Christine Clifford spotted the "Spear-carrying Boudicca striding across the Norfolk skies" earlier this week.

It is thought to be a combination of clouds and a plane trail, and looks like a woman with long-flowing hair.

Meteorologist Fred Best from Weatherquest said: "The more you look at it you can really see the Boudicca."

BBC Bitesize: Who was Boudicca?

Mrs Clifford was walking her dog near her home in Briggate, near North Walsham, when she "glanced up and there it was".

She felt that what she saw in the sky resembled Boudicca, the queen who led her Iceni tribe in a revolt against the Romans in East Anglia in AD61.

Boudicca led her Iceni tribe in a revolt against the Romans

"I'm always looking up at the sky but I've never seen anything so spectacular," Mrs Clifford said.

"It looked like the wind was blowing her hair behind her and she was off on the rampage - I thought, that's Boudicca.

"Lots of people see angels and rabbits in the clouds, but this was so definite."

A statue of the Iceni queen was erected on Westminster Bridge in London in 1902

Although no-one knows what the queen actually looked like, forecaster and cloud enthusiast Mr Best, from weather analysis company Weatherquest, agreed the image resembled pictures of Boudicca and said: "The photo actually looks awesome.

"Basically in terms of cloud types, the main 'body, head and legs' is high-level cirrus cloud, and the spear looks like it's from a plane trail (a contrail)."

More than 1,700 people liked Mrs Clifford's post on a photography Facebook page, calling it "incredible", "amazing" and "instantly recognisable".

While a few commented that Boudicca looked pregnant, retired midwife Mrs Clifford joked: "She might have been at the biscuit tin."