STITCH and Bitchers have launched their remembrance season tribute with a display that features a knitted Spitfire.

The group, which last year yarn bombed Royal Wootton Bassett with 600 knitted poppies, decided to mark the centenary of the Royal Air Force as well as helping the annual Royal British Legion poppy appeal.

So they have installed their own version of the famous fighter, soaring over the heads of visitors to Swindon Museum and Art Gallery.

Tracey Major, a member of the Swindon Stitch and Bitch group said: “We always commemorate Remembrance Sunday with a poppy display and with it being 100 years of the RAF we wanted to knit their most iconic aircraft and have the poppies all tumbling out of the back in a wave to create a waterfall effect.”

The Spitfire itself was knitted by Eileen Ashmore. She said, “Once I’d figured out how I was going to make it came together alright; and I’m really pleased with how it looks.”

The spitfire is knitted, and the stuffing and structure is achieved with balsa wood and bubble wrap. Eileen said, “The bubble wrap was great when you were shaping the aircraft, because if it looked a bit big, you just had to pop a few of the bubbles.”

It is the focus of a display that features a plume of poppies cascading down. Tracey explained the exhaust of the aircraft was made with a length of silver chiffon. More than 400 poppies were used to decorate the fabric.

Members of the group still have two more exhibitions in the pipeline, but Tracey said: " The display looks amazing and will be hanging around until the end of the month, so if you are in Old Town, do a quick flyby."

Last year's Remembrance Day in Wootton Bassett saw knitters descend on the town under the cover of darkness and dress the high street's trees with poppies.

A team of 35 of them created the flowers which were also left on windowsills and doorknobs to be found by members of the public. The materials had been bought with the help of a local firm inspired by the previous year's effort.