Goring-on-Thames Commemorates Armistice Day with Hand-Knitted Poppy Display
In Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, hundreds of hand-crafted poppies have been displayed outside a church to mark Armistice Day and the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two.
The installation features 1,752 poppies attached to 25 square metres of camouflage netting in Rectory Gardens. More than 110 balls of red wool were used, with each poppy knitted by hand as part of a project that began in July.
The display was organised by Cleeve by Goring Women’s Institute, the Goring Gap Local History Society, Goring and Streatley Arts, and Goring Parish Council. Parish councillor Barbara Newman said the idea for the tribute emerged earlier this year, as the council considered a project for the 80th anniversary. She described the display as a «beautiful and very moving tribute» and praised the community effort behind it.
Local residents learned to knit the poppies through two workshops run by Goring and Streatley Arts at St Thomas’ Church and the Belleme Room in the village hall. Janet Hurst of the Goring Gap Local History Society highlighted the village’s historical involvement in the World Wars and noted the strong community response to the project.
Newman added that the project captured the community’s imagination, evoking the spirit of the Blitz, and expressed hope that it would become a lasting legacy for the village.
