Shirland: ‘Annoyed’ as pastor’s cartoon scarecrows disappear

Two scarecrows depicting a comic book superhero and one of his enemies have been kidnapped from a village.

The Spiderman and Doctor Octopus figures were part of the Scarecrow Festival in Shirland, near Alfreton, Derbyshire.

They were created by Reverend Aaron Simpson and his children.

Mr Simpson, priest in charge of Morton, Stonebroom and Shirland, said the apparent theft had “angered” the whole community.

Making the scarecrows from existing costumes only took “a few hours.”

Their disappearance has not been reported to police, but people in the area are asked to keep an eye out for them in case they have been abandoned.

Mr Simpson said: “This year the children and I decided to take part in the Scarecrow Festival and as we love going to Comic-Con events, we made a Spiderman and a Doctor Octopus.

“They have been hanging for three weeks now and everyone in the community who has walked past them has absolutely loved them.

“People stopped their cars to look at them and take pictures.”

But presumably someone took the straw-stuffed figures away during the night from Monday to Tuesday.

Mr Simpson said: “We came outside and just felt like something was missing, then we realised what was gone.”

He said his three teenage children were “quite distraught” about her disappearance.

When asked why someone had taken them, Mr Simpson said that a passerby must have taken a liking to them.

He added: “We would like to have them back. They have become part of the community. They have brought joy to people’s faces and that is now over.”

The Scarecrow Festival, which also includes Higham and Stonebroom, runs until Saturday.