Retro: Looking back at chaos in Kirkby with ‘UFO crash’ of 1987

In the early hours of November 12, 1987, a “disturbance” was documented in local reports and news records.

Many accounts reported damage to 13 houses in the Kirkby area, but there was allegedly an air of mystery surrounding the event, with various unanswered questions.

On the same date, there were additional accounts of an Ashfield woodland being cordoned off by the authorities.

This mysterious event has since inspired a handful of blog posts, visits from extra-terrestrial enthusiasts, and even a folk song titled ‘Thieves Wood Incident’ by the Drury Hill Ghosts, available to stream at: soundcloud.com/druryhillghosts/thieves-wood-incident

In research compiled by documentarist and filmmaker Kristian Lander, Mr Lander claims to have uncovered the incident in 2007 while working for the Paranormal Network, where he was asked to investigate reports of UFO activity in Nottinghamshire.

Extending his research to the county's newspaper archives, he uncovered the first evidence of the little-reported incident during the early hours of November 12, 1987, in articles in the Hucknall Dispatch stored at the Hucknall Library/Local Studies Library.

According to findings, in the early hours of the morning, a "thunderball" crashed through 13 houses in Kirkby.

Mr Lander said most residents heard a noise, but only a handful reported seeing a light.

The disturbance blew out their windows and caused severe structural damage to several more, as reported by the local press at the time.

In his extensive report of the incident, Mr Lander outlined how residents felt the reaction of the authorities at the time suggested something “more sinister” – with

The Ashfield woodland, believed to have been near Annesley Hall, was allegedly closed at the time to the public and placed under armed guard, while locals were extensively questioned and roadblocks were established in the crash zone.

Mr Lander claimed that many residents reported witnessing an “airborne collision”, with some describing a “low-flying, bright object weaving above buildings, as if trying to avoid them”. Others described it as a “bobbing ball of light” hovering above the land.

A National Express coach driver on the A60 route from Nottingham to Mansfield vividly remembers when the roads in the area were closed off by police and military personnel.

Dominic Belgin, who spoke at a public talk and discussion held by the East Midlands UFO Research Association about the alleged crash, in Basford 1997, quoted an Ashfield district councillor as saying; “God only knows how no one was killed; it was like the blitz” during his recollection of the event.

A full rundown of research and findings from Mr Lander can be accessed at kristianlander.com under ‘The Thunderbolt Incident’.

Findings of the incident include speculation at the time, a timeline of events, and a response from the Forestry Commission, among other factors that could account for what happened that morning.

One witness claimed residents experienced electrical interference.

The comprehensive timeline of events, as curated by Mr Lander, documents witness accounts, a military response – including records of a helicopter crash, drone footage, documentation from councils and additional findings from that historic date.