Sea of 17,000 poppies honours the fallen at Durham Market Hall

Thousands of poppies have been hand made as part of an “emotional” Remembrance Day display in Durham City Centre.

Members of the public came together to create 30,000 poppies in red, white, purple and black, 16,386 of which have been suspended from the ceiling inside Durham Market Hall.

Sea of 17,000 poppies honours the fallen at Durham Market Hall | Contributed

placeholder image — Sea of 17,000 poppies honours the fallen at Durham Market Hall | Contributed

Durham Markets Company wanted to honour all Durham Light Infantry (DLI) soldiers who lost their lives during the First and Second World Wars.

Louisa McLean, of Durham Markets Company, said: “I'm over the moon with how the display looks - it was just as I had imagined.

“It was quite emotional viewing it for the first time after it was hung in place, and I still smile every time I look at it.

“The response has been incredible and I'm so happy that so many people have been visiting the Market Hall to see the installation for themselves.”

It took volunteers eight weeks in total to attach all 16,386 poppies to the netting, with most of the work done in the Market Hall at a dedicated stitching station.

Both Durham Parish Council and Durham MP Mary Kelly Foy came along to help attach poppies to the netting.

It then took the Durham Markets team around four days to build the frames, attach the nets and hang them all in place.

It took eight weeks to attach all 16,386 red and over 1,500 purple, white and black poppies to the netting. | Contributed

Louisa said: “I knew the Durham community was strong, so I had no doubt the target would be hit. What I never expected was that the campaign would go viral and reach so far.

"I have had poppies posted in from all over the UK - some because they have a connection to Durham but some because they just loved the idea and wanted to contribute.

"There were people who weren't crafty but still wanted to help in their own way, so they would buy wool and buttons to contribute.”

An additional 1,500 poppies in purple, white and black have also been attached inside the Market Hall.

The poppies will be on display at entrances to the Market Hall for the next couple of weeks.

Additional poppy displays in memory of the DLI - using the remainder of the total 30,000 poppies made - are also available to view at The Light and The Story, in Durham, over the Remembrance Day period.

Once the poppies are taken down, they will be stored safely to be reused in future years.