IT was a case of better late than never for the annual Moulton scarecrow trail which brought out the creative best in the village this year.

There was a great turnout in contributions for the two-week trail with 41 entries submitted into the ever-popular competition.

Carefully constructed characters for the event, which usually takes place in July during the run-up to Moulton Crow Fair, included Brian the Snail from The Magic Roundabout and Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz.

Other quirky additions were a sloth hanging from an upstairs window, a bike-riding ‘bear-crow’, a troll tree, a flying Scotsman, and it wouldn’t be a Moulton village event without at least a few crows in attendance.

There was also a very topical theme running through many of the displays with lots of the figures reflecting entrants’ responses to the pandemic.

These included NHS staff and other superhero keyworkers, and there were nods to those working from home in the current climate. There were even some enjoying a refreshing tipple and making the most ‘lockdown life’ in the garden.

Event organiser Alexandra Ehlen said: “The turn out was absolutely fantastic.

“People really outdid themselves and the entries reflect the community spirit in Moulton.

“We had to cancel a lot of events this summer so it was nice to have something more sociable yet safe to focus on and celebrate within our community. I think it helped to raise people’s spirits.”

On Sunday, September 6, trail followers were invited to the scarecrow polling station at The Lion to vote for their favourite effigy.

A figure of the gingerbread man, made by Natalie, David, Maddie and Lucas, scooped double first-place prizes after winning both the adult and children’s vote.

Runners up in the adult votes section, in descending order, were Brian the Snail, Florence Nightingale, a postman, a sloth, and the troll tree. And in the children’s voting section the sloth earned second place, and a baby shark came third.

The famous Mouton Crows group, who sponsored the event, also picked their own favourite to award a prize to this year which, perhaps unsurprisingly, was went to a nesting murder of crows.

Next year’s event is already being planned, the theme for which will be the colour yellow.