Cannock UFO mystery is finally solved

Oct 9 2008

Recognise the strange craft captured on film in the Cannock area?

You should - it’s a Craft Dairy Lea slice, flung into the air by a famed hoaxer.

And this week the local photographer, whose stories - including claims a pet parrot saved his life by ringing 999 - have made national headlines, declared: “The only UFOs over Cannock Chase have been Unidentified Fromage Objects.”

The snapper, who for obvious reasons wants to stay anonymous, reckons he is responsible for the rash of flying triangles - dubbed FTs by alien investigators - spotted over Cannock Chase.

He began circulating the spoof pictures since the late 80s, but decided to mothball his hobby when the extra terrestrial prank got out of hand amid claims of a Government cover-up and rumours that US Stealth bombers were being tested over our airspace.

The practical joker said: “One website speculated about the strange hieroglyphics on a craft I’d photographed near Beaudesert. It was the sell-by date.”

Now he has decided, with a marked drop in UFO sightings nationally, that it’s time to confess all. The truth is out there, he admits: “It’s on the supermarket shelves...in the dairy section.” The 49-year-old told The Post: “I saw a picture of a flying triangle in a magazine and thought it was a cheese slice, so I took some photos of my own to test the theory.

“I was so impressed with the results, I decided to go on Cannock Chase and fling a few about.

“It just grew from there - I’ve spent many a happy night chucking cheese in the air.”

He added: “I’ve also experimented with Baby Belle, but they just look like a beach ball.”

The camera man has suffered for his ‘art’, however.

Over the months, he ate so many of the left-over cheese triangles his cholesterol rocketed and he suffered a major heart-attack.

News of his X File ruse will infuriate UFO spotters who dubbed the period when triangles were spotted over our skies most frequently - early 1988 to 1990 - the ‘Staffordshire Flap’.

One particular incident, on May 16, 1988, sparked an indepth Defence Ministry probe, when scores of locals claimed two UFOs swooped over the Chase.

The event was recorded on radar and even caught the attention of air traffic control at Birmingham Airport.

However, our hoaxer protests that he wasn’t to blame for that one.

“I can’t chuck cheese that far - in any case, I’ve never thrown two in the air at the same time,” he said.

A senior UFO spotter we spoke to was not convinced by Jeff’s explanation.

She said: “He’s talking b*****ks.

“There were over 600 people who saw these things - and a lot of them were police officers.”

l Have you seen strange cheese - or perhaps the odd kebab - in our airspace.

Email mike_lockley@mrn.co.uk. Even better, send us a picture.