Billie Piper and Julian Clary are among the famous faces from Swindon’s past and present to be brought to life – in wool form.

The 30 crocheted dolls have been knitted by members of Swindon’s Stitch and Bitch. They will go on display at Swindon Museum and Art Gallery this week, as part of the group’s Character of Swindon exhibition.

As well as famous figures like railway engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and F1 pit stop girl Melissa Messenger, the exhibition will feature local notables like town centre “Harmonica Man” Michael Thomas.

Tracey Major, 50, of Swindon Stitch and Bitch, said: “We wanted to select characters past and present, because it’s all part of the story of our town. We didn’t just want to choose ‘famous’ people to create, because so many other people of Swindon influence our lives and the town.”

Knitter Suzy Cowper, 45, added: “There are people in our community who are like celebrities. You only have to say his name and everyone knows who you’re talking about.”

The Character of Swindon exhibition opens on Wednesday, March 28. Following the exhibition, the dolls will be sold to raise money for Swindon Mind.