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Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Date: 06/08/2026 Note: For reasons of anonymity pseudonyms have been used Over the weekend of 25th-26th July 2026 I was down in Somerset for the annual Glastonbury Symposium conference, which I was a speaker at. During the 26th July my wife Natasha decided to check out a local gift shop. She was wearing a Birmingham UFO Group t-shirt at the time. This sparked a conversation with one of the shop assistants, who claimed to have seen something early on the previous morning. Natasha came and got me and I had a discussion with the lady, who I shall call “Laura”, about what had occurred. Sighting Details Laura lives in Millstream Estate on the Western edge of Glastonbury. Around 1am in the morning of Saturday 25th July 2026 Laura woke up from her sleep needing to use the toilet. As she walked to the bathroom she decided to quickly peer out of the back bedroom window, which faces South. Aerial map of Millstream Estate It was a clear and still night. Laura immediately noticed a line of lights in the distance. It was hard to say exactly how far they were away but they appeared to be around the height of a patrol helicopter. Most prominent was a slightly curved line of around 5 orange coloured lights. Above them was a possible red light but this was hard to clearly make out. Below them were two lines of smaller lights. Witness drawing of the lights The lights were nearly stationary but there was a slight back and forth movement to them. They were all moving together and clearly appeared to be attached to a singular object, although this could not be made out due to the darkness. She estimated this would have been about the size of a small aircraft, roughly 25 feet across. Laura stared for about 2 minutes at the lights trying to work out what they were. Suddenly all the lights turned bright white! Even more confused by what the object could be Laura continued to watch it. After a further 2 minutes, the lights all seemed to disappear. The object did not seem to fly off anywhere, it was just gone. As it was a clear night Laura did not believe it had been hidden by a cloud. The object did not reappear so she went to the bathroom then got back into bed. Sighting Analysis This is an intriguing sighting of an unusual lit object. The object remained relatively still for 4 minutes so was not an aeroplane. It had the wrong lighting on it for a helicopter, normal navigation lights are white static, white strobing, red and green: The lights were not completely static so this rules out the idea that they were lights from a building or ground machinery such as a crane. Also as the sighting took place from her house, Laura would have seen the same lights on other occasions if this was where they were coming from. It was quite a still night so a cluster of tethered lit inflatables such as LED balloons would be possible. While most LED balloons are an individual colour, it is possible to purchase ones which can change colour on command via remote control. However, this seems somewhat unlikely, and the sudden disappearance of the lights entirely would not fit with this possibility. A drone cannot be ruled out, but these do not often have orange lights on them, and for what purpose would the pilot have changed the lights to white mid-flight? Also it is unlikely the pilot would have switched the lights off while it was airbourne, so again this doesn’t really fit with this explanation. What we are left with is a mystery. Could the lights have been attached to an advanced craft of some kind? This certainly cannot be ruled out. It’s great that my wife found out about this incident purely by chance, and highlights the fact that UFOs can be seen anywhere at any time. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Date: 04/08/2026 Sometimes speaking with one experiencer leads to further cases coming to light. In July 2026 I spoke with a man named Shaun about his UFO and contact experiences (Click here to view his report). During the investigation he mentioned that his close friend Paul had also had a fascinating sighting of a possible military intercept of a UFO back in the early 1980s. I arranged for a video call with Paul in early August to discuss. Incident Details In the summer of 1981/82 when Paul was 11-12 years old his father decided to build a pond in their back garden of their house in Bentilee, Stoke-On-Trent. He was a fisherman and decided he would catch some fish to populate the pond. Situated between Bentilee and Fenton Industrial Estate is an area of open grass-covered fields known as Berryhill Fields. Half way across the fields is a pond known as Tiddler’s Fishing Pond. Aerial map indicating Bentilee (A), Fenton Industrial Estate (B) and Tiddler’s Fishing Pond (C) Aerial map of Tiddler’s Fishing Pond One clear and still evening his father decided to head out to the pond, accompanied by Paul and his younger brother Matt. It was a very pleasant, warm and still evening. They began walking across the fields from the North Eastern side. Photograph of Berryhill Fields Paul says that they had only been walking for about a minute when they suddenly heard the roar of jet engines. Looking up and to their right they saw two dark grey coloured military fighter jets travelling in a South East direction. But the jets were not alone. Ahead of them moving in the same direction was what appeared to be a tall cone-shaped object with a rounded base. It was dark grey in colour similar to the jets, and appeared to be about twice the size of them. Coming from it was brightly flashing multi-coloured lights. Paul says “all the colours were coming from it, it was phenomenal! Reds, blues, greens, yellows, whites, the whole bloody shebang!” The object was rotating anti-clockwise, not particularly fast but at a constant speed. It was moving the same speed as the jets, giving Paul the distinct impression that they were intentionally tailing it rather than trying to catch up. Witness drawing of the UFO and two jets He exclaimed “Hey dad! What’s that? What’s that?” However his father appeared completely in denial, looking down at the ground. He said “They’re fighter jets.” Paul responded “No – What they’re chasing. What they’re flying after.” Matt said "I see it! I see it as well!" But his father continued to act like there was nothing unusual going on. They watched as the object and the jets flew on a level and straight course to the South East passing from right to left in front of them. Paul says the jets were not flying at full speed, he estimates about 150 mph. They seemed quite low down, perhaps 1000 feet up. After a couple of minutes both the UFO and jets were lost from sight behind Park Hall Gas Holder situated at the edge of Park Hall Country Park on the junction between Dividy Road and Anchor Road. The Gas Holder was demolished in 2018, and has now been replaced with Top Gear Stoke used car dealer. Aerial map showing the prior location of Park Hill Gas Holder Photograph of Park Hill Gas Holder in the 1980s Aerial map showing the estimated position of the witnesses and the path of the UFO Paul says that he told Shaun about what happened soon afterwards, and that the incident has remained clear in his mind, almost like it happened yesterday. Incident Analysis This fascinating sighting represents a potential military intercept of a UFO. The object was clearly not a normal aircraft or helicopter of any kind. The incident happened decades before drones were in commercial use. If it wasn’t for the speed of movement I would have suggested that it was a novelty balloon potentially brightly reflecting the sunlight making it appear to be flashing multiple colours, and tumbling as it drifted on an air current. Paul is convinced that the colours were coming from definite lights on the object rather than reflections but it is important to remember that he was only 11/12 years old at the time. This possibility cannot be entirely ruled out. However, the object was being tailed by the two jets, and all three flew right across the sky. Even if the jets were flying particularly slow they would of course easily catch up with a drifting balloon. The fact that they did not meant that the object was moving the same speed as them, far too quickly for it to have been a balloon. It also seemed very sizeable, about twice as big as them, meaning it was likely about 120-150 feet in length. Regarding the way that Paul’s father acted during the sighting, Paul says that he has always been this way and actively ignores things he cannot rationally explain. I have investigated cases of cone-shaped UFOs before. If this genuinely was an intercept of an advanced craft, then it is unknown how long the jets had been tailing it for. The most likely RAF bases they could have taken off from would be RAF Sealand, approximately 40 miles North West West of Bentilee, or RAF Woodvale approximately 60 miles to the North West (RAF Sealand closed in 2006). Aerial map showing Bentilee (A), prior location of RAF Sealand (B) and RAF Woodvale (C) Unfortunately, without a more specific date that the incident took place on I will be unable to raise a Freedom Of Information Request with the Ministry Of Defence. I am also unable to discuss the incident with Matt as Paul has not spoken with him in many years. However, after speaking with Paul and seeing the way that he described the incident on video call I am convinced it took place as he described. I would like to thank him for taking the time to go over the incident and get it down on record. If you have any information relating to what took place, please get in touch. Paul has also had a sighting of an orange orb in the winter of 2025. Although this likely has a mundane explanation, the details can be viewed in a separate case report here. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Date: 04/08/2026 In early August 2026 I spoke with a man named Paul about a stunning incident he witnessed as a child which potentially involved the military intercept of a UFO (Click here to check this out). In our discussion he also mentioned that he had a second sighting in the winter of 2025. This report covers this additional sighting. Sighting Details About 10:30pm on an evening in winter 2025 (exact date unknown), Paul decided to walk down to the local Tesco supermarket from his house in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent. He approached the supermarket from the North, walking South along Chell Street. It was a quiet evening and there was nobody else around. Due to the time of year it was already fully dark. It was still and clear, but cold. As Paul walked along the road, an object suddenly came into view in the sky over the rooves of the houses. It looked like a circular orange orb of light. It appeared to be about the height a kite would fly at, maybe about 40-50 feet. Photograph of Chell Street Paul thought to himself “What’s that?” Due to the fact that the object appeared quite small and it was after dark, he realised his smartphone would be unlikely to pick it up, so didn’t bother trying to film it. The object moved across the road ahead of him and continued on a straight path until it vanished from sight. Paul continued his walk to the shop. Sighting Analysis The object appeared small, low down and was the wrong colour for normal navigation lights of an aircraft. While it could have been a drone, these do not usually have orange coloured lights, and it’s likely that due to the fact it was a quiet night Paul would have heard the buzzing rotor blades if this was what the object was. The most likely explanation for what was seen was a sky lantern drifting on an air current. Paul did not notice any flickering in the brightness of the orb, but sometimes lanterns do appear continuously bright. The colour of the orb, straight and slow movement path, apparent small size and lack of any intelligent manoeuvres all fit with the lantern explanation. Although an orange coloured LED balloon cannot be ruled out, a lantern seems more probable. Sky lanterns are less common these days due to the fact that shops have stopped selling them because of the fire risk. However they are not illegal and can still be purchased online, and people may have also stored them from previous years when they were far more popular. I feel this is what Paul most likely witnessed on this occasion. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Date: 06/08/2024 Last Updated: 29/07/2026 In June 2024 I came across a Facebook post regarding a Flying Triangle sighting a man named Anthony Spears had experienced. I reached out to him on Messenger expressing an interest in the incident. We arranged a video call to go over it in depth. During this call Anthony also revealed he had experienced two previous sightings, the first of which had made a massive impact on the lives of both him and his parents. This report covers this initial childhood sighting in depth. Links to the reports on his two other sightings can be found towards the end of it. Sighting Details In 1989 when Anthony was 7 years old he lived with his parents in a house on Coronation Road, Portland, Dorset. Portland is famous for its annual fair which has taken place near to Chesil Beach for the last 200 years in late October to early November. One day in late October Anthony had visited the fair with his parents Peter and Sylvia. Historic photograph of Portland Fair It was dusk, around 6pm due to the time of year, and they were on their way back home. They were at the Southern end of Verne Common Road and had just started ascending the gradual hill towards Harbour View Road. There were no other pedestrians around at the time, it was quite quiet. The only nearby illumination was from the street light they had just walked past. Aerial map of Verne Common Road indicating the position of the witnesses Anthony can’t recall who saw them first, but one of his parents suddenly stated “Look at that up there!” Everyone looked up into the sky and were amazed at what they saw. A short distance to the West of them at a very high elevation were what appeared to be five glowing orange oval/disc shaped objects. They were viewing them from almost underneath, so initially appeared circular. They had clearly defined edges with no halo around them. AI generated drawing showing the UFOs passing over the area They were arranged into a symmetrical V-shaped formation, and were moving very slowly along heading in a Easterly direction. However rather than flying with the central object at the front of the formation it was instead at the top, with the other objects spaced equally outwards below it, like an upside down V. Anthony's original drawing of the UFOs passing over the area (as they looked from below) They appeared to be completely silent. As they moved on a straight course to the East, passing right over their heads, the objects did not drift from one another at all, and remained constantly bright. Anthony estimates they were moving around 5 mph. Below is an AI-generated video Anthony created to demonstrate the appearance and movement path of the formation: Drawing of the objects on a photograph of the sighting location indicating path of movement: During the sighting Anthony and his parents did not talk much, they were transfixed by what they were looking at. Sadly they did not have a camera on them at the time so were unable to take any photographs or video footage. The family watched them for a number of minutes as they slowly moved away on a level and straight course. As the angle changed, their disc shapes became more noticeable. After this time they entered a small cloud. The witnesses expected them to emerge from the other side of this cloud as they were moving on a constant speed, but they did not. They had seemingly vanished without trace. They continued their walk up the hill. It was only when they arrived home that the sighting began to really sink in. Sylvia immediately drew a colour picture of what they had witnessed while it was still fresh in her memory. Anthony had kept this drawing and was able to provide a scan of it for me. Sylvia’s drawing of the UFOs passing overhead The sighting made a lasting impact on both Anthony and his parents, which later on would lead to a fascination with the UFO subject. Sylvia’s Testimony Sadly Anthony’s father Peter has now passed away. However I was able to speak with Sylvia on a later video call to hear what she recollected. Below is her testimonial statement on the incident. “I remember it like it happened yesterday. We was coming back from the beach 'cause they had the fair on 31st October for Halloween. We were walking back up to the top of the hill. It had just turned dark, sun was just setting. Could still see the clouds. That's when we saw five orangey-peach lights, big lights, over our heads moving really slowly across the sky. We watched for ages until they disappeared behind a little puffy cloud. We waited until they came out of the other side but they didn't they just vanished. They were something we had never seen before. They looked like glowing balls of light. They were moving across the sky in a formation. There were five lights in a diagonal pattern. no change in brightness, kept in exactly the same pattern. Absolutely amazing. We didn't have a camera, couldn't take a picture. We looked at them for at least five minutes. They went directly over our heads. No sound as well. I always wanted to believe in UFOs but after that it proved it for me." I asked Sylvia if she knows what sky lanterns are. In response to this she said "They definitely weren't those. They were too large. The colour was different, like a pinkish-orange colour. They remained in formation and did not drift in position from one another." Sighting Analysis Anthony has always thought of the orange discs as round lights on a singular large object. Because of the way they were all moving together at a constant speed and direction I can see how he could have ended up with this impression. However in going over the details with him, viewing his mother’s drawing and obtaining testimonies from them both, I feel it is more probable that this was five objects travelling in formation rather than a singular object. It was not fully dark, so if there had been a main body around the orbs this would have been visible, yet no such main body was drawn by Sylvia or Anthony. The orbs could not have been aeroplanes or helicopters flying in formation. They were too clearly defined and were the wrong colour for aircraft. Navigation lights of both planes and helicopters are white, red and green, and even at high altitude it is possible to see these. It was not fully dark the shapes of these aircraft would have been visible. The objects were also seemingly moving much too slowly to be aircraft. Lastly it would be logical and most common for a V-formation of aircraft to fly with the central plane/helicopter at the front and the others spanning out behind them (Although it is of course possible for aircraft to fly in any formation they choose). Example photograph of five jets flying in a V-formation The incident took place decades before drones and LED balloons were available. Five remote controlled models being flown together is extremely unlikely, and the objects seemed too large for this to be the explanation. Hot air balloons are never flown in formation like this. The vast majority of hot air balloons are light bulb shaped, and as it was not yet dark this shape would have been immediately recognisable. There are numerous reasons why I do not believe that this was a launch of five sky lanterns. Firstly, lanterns appear as glowing orbs at a distance, yet according to Anthony's testimony these were clearly flattened discs. Both witnesses remarked on the size of the objects. They were clearly up in the low cloud layer as they were finally lost from view behind one. Low lying cloud tends to usually appear around 5000 feet up, so they were clearly at quite a high altitude, meaning that they would have had to have been quite large. Sky lanterns were not widely available back in the late 1980s. They only became popular in the noughties, and of course have since been largely removed from shops due to the fire hazard (although they are still currently legal in the UK). When caught on an air current lanterns do often follow the same path across the sky, however there would usually be a small amount of drift detected, especially if observing them for several minutes. No such drift was observed with the objects, the retained positioning from one another throughout the sighting. Also lanterns tend to flicker in brightness due to the flame, yet the witnesses reported that these objects were constantly bright. The objects were in a symmetrical pattern which may indicate possible intelligence, although this could of course have been purely coincidental. The way in which the UFOs vanished all at the same time while out of sight behind a cloud is another aspect which needs to be addressed. When lanterns burn out they can seem to suddenly vanish, however it is extremely unlikely that all five of them would burn out at the same moment, even if they had been launched around the same time. So surely at least some of them would have emerged from the cloud and still been visible? I feel there is enough testimonial evidence which points away from this sighting being a launch of sky lanterns. With this and other mundane explanations dismissed, I feel there is the possibility that this was a genuine sighting of a formation of glowing craft. I have investigated formation sightings numerous times before, although they are quite rare. Anthony has experienced two other UFO sightings in his life. A couple of years later while still living in Portland he witnessed a silver coloured sphere. Click here to go to the case report. Many years later in Bournemouth he witnessed a Flying Triangle potentially being intercepted by a military jet. For the case report on this incident click here. I would like to thank Anthony and Sylvia for coming forward with the details of these sightings. It is good to get them finally down on record. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Date: 23/07/2026 Last Updated: 29/07/2026 In July 2022 I came across a Facebook post by Shaun Kirkland discussing an incident involving a glowing being. I reached out to him via Messenger to find out some further details about what happened. He got back to me with some recorded audio clips that covered the incident at a high level. He also discussed a previous incident involving some flashes of light. The following month he sent me video footage of a UFO he had recently managed to capture. After this our correspondence ceased for a number of years. In July 2026 after coming across the case details I decided to get back in touch to see if he could provide any further information. He responded and we arranged a video call to discuss everything in more depth as well as a recent additional sighting which had taken place. I am now pleased to finally get his experiences down on official record. Flashes of Light In 1980 when Shaun was 10 years old he lived with his parents and younger brother Darren in a house on Ford Avenue, Chell Heath, Stoke-On-Trent. Aerial map of Ford Avenue In the distance to the North East was the closed Chatterley Whitfield Mining Site. The site still exists today and has been re-opened as a heritage museum. South of the mine was a slag heap and some gradually sloping hills (now covered in trees). These hills could be seen from their road. Aerial map showing Ford Avenue (A) and the hillside (B) One late evening Shaun and Darren were chatting with a neighbour over his fence. It was a pleasant and still, though there was a bank of low lying cloud over the hills in the distance. View of the distant hills from the end of Ford Avenue Suddenly they saw white flashes coming from inside the bank of cloud. Shaun says that there were around four flashes in total, spaced out at different locations within the cloud. There was no sound of any thunder. Considering the nice weather they were mystified by what had just occurred. Looking at what took place, I do wonder if what the witnesses observed was sheet lightning. This is completely silent but lights up the clouds in the manner that Shaun described. This seems to be the most likely explanation for what was seen. When I suggested this to Shaun on our video call he did not disagree with this possibility. Glowing Figure Back in the 1980s there were a number of open fields between the town and the mine site (A number of paths have since been built). Shaun, Darren and their friends would regularly walk across these fields and play inside the derelict buildings closed mine site. These days it is fenced off but at the time it was completely open to freely explore. Photograph of Chatterley Whitfield Mine from the early 1980s Aerial 3D map of the site One late evening in 1981 Shaun, Darren and two of their friends decided to go and play at the mine. The sun was low in the sky but there was still enough light to see. As they entered the site at the South West corner, they had the familiar view of the mine buildings ahead of them. About the length of a football pitch (300 feet) away from them was a tightly spaced number of buildings close to the tall chimney. One of the buildings used to be used to load up trucks with coal. There was an open area near the base of it where the trucks used to park. They were shocked to see what appeared to be a glowing figure standing there. It looked humanoid, with a head, arms and torso clearly visible. It was glowing a light yellow colour and standing completely still. Shaun estimates that the figure was about 4.5 to 5 feet in height. Due to the distance it was at there were no facial features visible. Witness drawing of the figure It did not appear to be clothed, as it was the same brightness all over. The glow was not bright enough to reflect off any of the surroundings. Aerial 3D map indicating the viewing direction and rough location of the figure The boys stopped walking and stood there staring at it, not knowing what to do. Shaun asked “What’s that over there?” Darren responded saying “I don’t know what that is.” It wasn’t long before they all turned around and ran up the hill to the East of their location as fast as possible! Once they were up on the hill the figure was no longer visible and they felt safer. They sat down and discussed what they’d just all witnessed. They did not go back to the mine site that day, but the next time they went back there was no sign of the figure. He does not recall discussing it much with his brother or parents on later dates. About 6 months ago he brought up the incident with his brother in conversation, and apparently his brother has no recollection of what took place. Shaun finds this odd as his brother was 9 years old at the time and just like himself was frightened of the figure. I asked Shaun if he felt it could have been pareadolia caused by an object brightly reflecting the setting sun. However, he feels this is unlikely for a number of reasons. He says that he, his brother and friends knew the layout of the site extremely well. They were certain there was nothing present in that location which would have been reflecting light. This was the only time they ever saw the figure, logically if this was the cause they would have seen the same thing on other occasions. Also, Shaun says that if it was the sunlight shining on something, then the same sunlight would have been shining on the building wall above it, yet it was not. I agree with his arguments. Shaun thinks he put the figure down to a ghostly apparition at the time, but is now not so sure. It seemed too short for a normal adult, and did not appear to be clothed. I have investigated a number of contact cases involving glowing entities, and other cases involving beings seen inside derelict buildings. There is no reason at all to dismiss the idea that this could have been such an incident, although if it was the being does not appear to have been there for them. It was quite far away when they spotted it, and it did not approach or try to communicate in any way. Ring UFO Video On 9th August 2022 Shaun was standing outside. It was late evening and due to the time of year the sun was just starting to set. It was a still evening with a mostly clear sky. He suddenly noticed what appeared to be a black coloured object moving across the sky at an elevation of about 60 degrees. He got out his smartphone and managed to take the below video footage as it travelled overhead: Below is a zoomed still of the UFO taken at 17 seconds into the video: Zoomed image with edge find: From the footage the object appears to be ring shaped, and not particularly large in size. The background sound is likely to be from a passing aircraft not the object. Due to the tumbling rotation as it moves I feel there is a high likelihood that what Shaun has filmed here is a black coloured novelty balloon drifting on air currents. When I discussed the sighting with him on video call he had no recollection of sending me the video back in 2022. I don’t feel this is down to anything mysterious like missing time, I just feel that it did not make that much of an impact on him at the time. Like me he agrees that it looks like a novelty balloon. High Altitude UFO Shaun now lives on Bycars Road. At 7:23pm on Sunday 19th July 2026 he and his friend “Po” were sitting outside relaxing in the back garden. It was a pleasant evening with a clear blue sky and no wind. Aerial map of Bycars Road Shaun suddenly noticed a glint of light reflecting in the sky almost overhead. He looked up and tried focusing on it to see what it was. He initially assumed it must be a silver coloured balloon reflecting the sunlight. However, he soon realised it was stationary in the sky at quite a high altitude. The object appeared to be a white cigar-shape brightly reflecting at each end, about the size of a small aircraft. A darker grey coloured area then seemed to appear directly above it, blurred due to the distance. The object seemed to keep vanishing and re-appearing as he watched, and was potentially tipping back and forth as the darker grey above it also kept appearing and disappearing. Witness drawing of the UFO He pointed the object out to Po. His friend suggested it might be a drifting bin bag. But Shaun said to him “Bin bags don’t flash like that!” Both witnesses got out their smartphone and tried recording the UFO. On Shaun's footage the object didn't show up at all due to it's distance. However on Po's footage (which Shaun forwarded to me), the object is briefly visible: Zoomed still of the UFO from 5 seconds into the footage: The same zoomed image with edge find: After about 10 minutes they noticed a light aircraft heading in the direction of the object. It appeared to be roughly the same altitude as it, although this was hard to accurately judge. As the plane approached suddenly the object disappeared without trace! The plane flew past where it had previously been and continued on its flight path. A couple of minutes later a larger plane with sharply angled wings, potentially military, came into view from a different direction and again flew by. Shaun and Po continued to stare up at the sky for a further 15 minutes, but the object did not reappear. When discussing the incident with Shaun on video call he could not recollect the precise date and time. But later on he messaged me to say he had spoken with Po and they confirmed that the incident happened on 19th July at 7:23pm. I checked on Flight Radar 24 to see if I could see either of the two aircraft which Shaun claimed to have seen around the time the object disappeared. However, I was surprised to find that no aircraft showed up around the provided date and time: This very likely means that they did not have their transponders on. Military aircraft often don’t fly with transponders on, and there is no legal requirement for any aircraft to do so. The most unusual aspect of this incident is the length of time that the object appeared to remain motionless (other than the apparent tipping motion). If it was a distant balloon of some kind a degree of natural drift would be expected over 10 minutes even in still air conditions. Shaun was certain that it had not moved as he could see its position in relation to some trees on the ground. Shaun is convinced that it was not a distant helicopter (I would agree based on his description of it), and at the distance it was at a drone would likely have not been visible at all. When the object vanished this was probably just it moving away out of sight range, although it does seem a little coincidental that it did this just as another aircraft was heading towards it. The video Po shot of the object does not reveal much. It is clearly a solid object brightly reflecting the sunlight, which appears to be at considerable altitude. However due to the distance it is hard to determine the shape or size. It could potentially be a reflective silver/white balloon. Solar airships are cylindrical in shape, but are usually black. It is likely that this would have been more obvious even at distance. t sounds like it was too high altitude to have been tethered in place. That said, a cylindrical balloon gradually drifting on air currents cannot be entirely ruled out. Conclusions While some of Shaun’s experiences, such as the flashes of light and UFO sightings, likely have mundane explanations, the glowing humanoid which he, his brother and friends witnessed is far harder to explain. While it is possible that it was sunlight reflecting off something, this does seem unlikely due to the reasons previously discussed. I would like to thank Shaun for getting back in touch and providing enough details and drawings for this case report to finally be released. If you have any information relating to any of these experiences please get in touch. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated: 22/07/2026 On New Year’s day 2022 a man named Chris reached out to Birmingham UFO Group via our website sighting report form. He wanted to pass on details about a sighting his grandparents had back in 1980 to get it down on the record. What is particularly fascinating is that their sighting apparently happened just two nights before the beginning of the Rendlesham Forest incident in Suffolk, Kent. Sadly they were now both deceased, but Chris knew enough information about what happened to warrant this report. Sighting Details Back in 1980 Chris’s grandparents lived on Shawhurst Lane, Wythall. Aerial map of Shawhurst Lane On the night of 24th December 1980 his grandmother woke up and noticed a light glowing through the condensation on the South East facing bedroom window. She got up and went to the window to find out what it was. She wiped the condensation off the window and peered out in the direction of Earlswood. Back in 1980 there were less houses as there are today, and she had a clear line of sight to some trees in the distance a couple of miles away. She saw a huge glowing red/orange circular object hovering in the night sky, fairly low above the visible horizon. She was confused by what the object was so woke up her husband. He got up and joined her at the window. As they watched, the object moved slowly across the sky on a straight path. It then moved down behind the tree line out of sight. From that moment on, Chris says his grandmother had a huge interest in the UFO subject. On the other hand, his grandfather never wanted to discuss it. Chris says that he was a dental scientist, and because it didn’t fit with his logical brain he preferred not to think about it. At the time they had no idea that only a couple of nights later UFO activity took place down in Rendlesham Forest. They only found out about this several years later when the story was published in the News Of The World on 2nd October 1983. Newspaper article about the Rendlesham Forest incident Aerial map indicating Wythall (A) and Rendlesham Forest (B) Sighing Analysis This is a fascinating sighting especially considering the date it took place on. The object seen by Chris’s grandparents obviously cannot have been the setting sun or the moon because they watched it visibly move across the sky. It clearly wasn’t a normal aircraft or helicopter of any kind. The incident happened decades before drones were utilised so this can be discounted. It is sometimes hard to correctly determine distance and therefore size of objects in the sky, especially after dark. However, the witnesses watched the object descend down behind the tree line, confirming it was a large object being viewed at distance rather than a small object (such as a sky lantern) up close. Could the object have been a hot air balloon? While this initially seems plausible, there are a number of aspects which point away from this. Firstly, the majority of hot air balloons are light bulb shaped not spherical, although it could have been a novelty shape. However, hot air balloons only glow after dark when their flame is lit to give them lift. This flame is lit in bursts not continuously. It is also obvious at distance that this flame is positioned near to the base of the balloon: There is also the fact that this was a night-time sighting. It is only legal to fly hot air balloons after dark if they have a warning light. This is a white flashing light which hangs down from the basket. No such flashing light was observed. I therefore feel there is enough evidence to point away from this as the explanation. With mundane explanations dismissed, what we are left with is something truly anomalous, potentially a glowing spherical advanced craft. The fact that this took place a couple of days prior to the Rendlesham Forest incident is fascinating. Could the sighing have been directly related, or was this nothing more than coincidence? Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated: 22/07/2026 In mid-October 2022 I was contacted by a delivery van driver named Gregory regarding a number of days of UFO activity he had witnessed earlier in the month. Unfortunately, he did not respond to my additional questions so only the initial provided details are known at present. Night One At 7pm on 11th October 2022 Gregory was parked in his van near Wollacombe. It was a clear and dry evening. Due to the time of year the sun had fully set and the full moon was visible. Suddenly out of the front windscreen he watched a bright white orb of light rapidly descend in the sky, instantly stop, pulse several times and then disappear. Aerial map of Woolacombe Shortly after the sighting, he heard a noise coming from the top of the van that sounded like someone rhythmically tapping on it with their nails. He nudged the van door and the noise immediately ceased. About 10 minutes later it started again. This time he plucked up enough courage to exit the van and have a look on the roof. When he did so he found nothing there. He got back in the van, but left the door unlocked and positioned himself so he could easily jump out if it started a third time. As expected after a short time it did. He leapt out of the van fully expecting to see something, but again there was nothing. However, he then noticed the heads and shoulders of two figures in the field he was parked in. The figures began walking around the field in a circle around the van. Gregory was frightened that they were criminals who were planning to rob parts of his van. He remained awake and vigilant, not daring to drive away or drop off to sleep. The figures remained present until the morning light, approximately 12 hours later! Eventually they departed and were no longer visible. Night Two After what had taken place Gregory decided to move on from that location. He took the A39 down through Porlock Hill. He then found a quiet spot close to Wheddon Cross near Minehead. Aerial map of Wheddon Cross As he made a cup of tea for himself he thought back to what had happened the previous evening. He felt that because of the bright orb he had seen and the length of time the figures had remained for afterwards they had potentially not been human. Sitting outside the van a while he spoke with several dog walkers. In the early evening he was once again sitting in the driver’s seat of the van. It was around 7pm again. Suddenly what appeared to be the same bright white orb appeared in the sky! This time he didn't feel as scared as I he had the previous evening. He thought that if something bad was going to happen it would have already. He got his lighter out which has a blue-coloured torch light on it. He held it up and started making quick flashes of light. Gregory claims that every time he flashed it the orb flashed back in response! He then began to notice other white orbs in other positions at a higher altitude. The initial orb appeared to be flashing at these too, as well as changing direction and moving towards them. It was as if they were communicating with one another. Gregory started trying to communicate telepathically with the main orb. He started asking questions like “What do you want?” and “How do I know you are real?” He also asked them to do certain manoeuvres and they apparently did everything he asked. He asked how they were not spotted just openly sat in the sky, and asked if it was camouflage and they could reveal any little part of their ship without full disclosure. Next he asked the beings in control of the white orb to come down and say hello. He then noticed a small white orb of light emerge from out of some nearby bushes. In his mind he asked whether it was them and felt that he got the answer “Yes” in his mind. As the small orb began to approach the van he got frightened and put the light on. The small orb instantly vanished. Gregory asked telepathically if the lights were a problem. Suddenly what appeared to be a figure emerged from the hedgerow in front of him. The body movement looked really odd. In his mind he started to ask “Are you ok fella? Are you ok over there?” The figure continued to walk slowly towards the van. Just like before he began to get frightened and turned the lights on again. Instead of just vanish like the orb had done, the figure disappeared but reappeared further down the hedge row. Next two jets came thundering across the sky towards the glowing orbs. Initially none of the objects moved at all. The jets seemed to circle the vicinity, then began to fly directly towards the higher altitude orbs. As they did the orbs moved away from them. The jets began to chase the higher altitude orbs around the sky. They were joined by at least 10 more jets, which started flying around after the orbs in pairs. The main initial orb remained stationary occasionally flashing in brightness. Analysis of Incidents These are a series of interesting incidents which may or may not be connected. The initial white orb which Gregory saw on the first evening seems to have performed some advanced manoeuvres, suggesting it was not a drifting white coloured LED balloon. It seemed to descend too rapidly to be a distant helicopter. It is possible it was a drone with white lights on, however there would be no reason for these lights to have flashed and then switched off. The short time between the orb disappearing and the beginning of the tapping noises does sound un-nerving, however there is nothing really linking the two incidents. There is no evidence that the orb was a craft which had then landed, or that the tapping sounds were a being on the roof of the van. The fact that Gregory leapt out of the van and checked twice yet found nothing confirms this. It is far more probable that the tapping noises were either the metal chassis of the van warping due to temperature changes, or perhaps small objects such as seeds from a nearby tree hitting the roof. The two figures seen circling the van is a particularly bizarre aspect of this case. It is unknown why Gregory did not simply drive the van away from the area. If the figures were human, it is extremely odd that they would remain there for such an extensive period of time. If they were there to rob the van, or just wanted to mess with Gregory and frighten him, surely after a while they would have just given up? If they were instead alien beings of some kind, why would they have circled the van for many hours without ever approaching? The following evening Gregory saw numerous white orbs in the sky. Even though the initial orb seen could have been the same object from the previous night returning, there is no definite evidence of this. It did not perform any manoeuvres, it just hovered still in the sky and appeared to make sudden flashes in brightness. Perhaps it was nothing more than a bright twinkling star, although the flashes it was making sound more prominent than this. The fact that the flashes appeared to sometimes be timed with the witness's attempts to communicate with it is interesting, but could potentially be coincidental. The other orbs at higher altitude were clearly not stars, as they began moving once the many military jets turned up and started flying around after them. If this is indeed what Gregory witnessed then there is a possibility they were something advanced and potentially non-human in origin. Unfortunately, without more accurate locations and times I will not be able to raise a Freedom Of Information Request with the MOD to see if I can find out any information regarding any military activity which took place in the vicinity on the night in question. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated: 21/07/2026 Note: For reasons of anonymity pseudonyms have been used In 2022 I posted a link to a new case report I’d written up covering a red glowing sphere seen over Birmingham in 1969. The link was posted on a number of UFO related Facebook groups. In response to this I was contacted on Facebook Messenger by a man who I shall name “Jack”. He informed me that he had seen something similar from his house in Wallsend, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyne and Wear. Jack did not respond to further questions, so the information known about what happened is limited at present. Sighting Details Jack says the incident happened around 2019, but he cannot remember the exact date or time. His living room is on the middle floor of a townhouse. He was sitting there by himself when he recalls something coming into view on the left side of the window. Aerial map of Wallsend It appeared to be about the size of a football and quite close to the house. It was glowing a deep red colour. It was around 20 feet above the nearby roof tops, and was moving on a straight course extremely slowly, potentially slower than walking pace. There was no perceivable sound coming from it. Suddenly it halted in the sky. Out of the top right corner of the orb he then saw a smaller mustard yellow coloured glowing sphere emerge from it. It appeared to be about the size of a tennis ball. It looked like it was observing something. It then retreated and seemed to merge back into the red orb. Slowly the orb then moved off towards the coast road. Jack ran upstairs and got his son to come and look at it as it slowly moved away. In the distance were some crane lights near to the River Tyne and Newcastle city centre. The object seemed to remain at the same height as these as it departed. Without warning it either shrank in size or the light within it switched off as it dropped to the ground, leaving a trail behind it as it disappeared from view. Sighting Analysis This an intriguing sighting. The object was clearly not a distant aircraft or helicopter. While a drone cannot be entirely ruled out, at the distance it appeared to be the witness would likely have heard the buzzing rotor blades. A red coloured LED balloon drifting on air currents seems unlikely because of the smaller orb that emerged from it and the way in which it suddenly switched off and descended. Some aspects suggest that what Jack saw may have been a sky lantern. Lanterns are usually described as being amber orange in colour not deep red, but this can vary depending on lighting conditions. The small size would fit with a lantern, as would the way it suddenly seemed to descend and “switch off” as it moved away into the distance. Lanterns only remain airborne when lit, if the flame in them dies out they can suddenly drop from the sky. However, there are some aspects which are more interesting. While the abrupt halt could of potentially been caused by it drifting into a conflicting air current for a period of time, the smaller yellow orb which emerged from it sounds very unusual. A spark or small flame could potentially drop from a lantern but this would usually fall downwards below it out of the opening at the base, not move up diagonally, stop and then seem to re-join it. This aspect does suggest that the object may have been something far more unusual. That said, a drifting spark cannot be entirely ruled out. Unfortunately, Jack did not manage to capture the object on camera so we only have his testimony to go on. If you have any information relating to this incident, please get in touch. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated: 21/07/2026 Initial Post & Photograph On 16th December 2022 a lady named Sonya Marie Rye started a thread on the Alien Abductions & UFO Sightings Facebook page (which is no longer active). She claimed that she had been looking at Google Earth in the vicinity of her home and saw a mysterious figure. Here is her post with the image: As you can see the picture clearly showed a brown coloured Bigfoot-like silhouette seemingly standing among some bushes. Due to the lack of clarity of both the post and the image I initially suspected that it could potentially have been tampered with using electronic paint software. Photograph Analysis I contacted Sonya via Messenger and asked her if she could send me the two original screen grabs she took off her phone which were clearly used to make up the singular image she posted. She did so swiftly and without question: These provided additional address details 17450 Co Rd 83 Building which were not present on the cut down posted image. I opened up Google Earth on my computer and used both this and the location mentioned on the original image, 23097 Powers Ln, to track down the location. It took me a little while but I was eventually able to find the right road. I started to visually drive along it using street view. I was surprised to find that the figure was indeed present in the photograph: I wondered if I would be able to capture it from different angles, as the camera car would have clearly driven along the road. So I started to move along the road: The figure was then briefly hidden from view by vegetation: However, it luckily came back into view for a number of additional positions: As you can see above, it became immediately obvious to me that the object was a flat Bigfoot cut-out made out of wood, very likely placed in the undergrowth to trick passing drivers! I reached out to Sonya to inform her of my findings. I do not believe that she had anything to do with the cut-out, and had genuinely found it when looking on Google Earth. A number of hours later she posted again, saying that she had walked out to the location and managed to find it! It is unknown how long the cut-out has been standing there or whether it is still there today. It's visible on Google Maps, and the street view photograph dates are from February 2022, meaning that it had been there at least 11 months when Sonya discovered it. Even though the case was solved, it certainly provided much amusement for everyone involved. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated 20/07/2026 Notes: For privacy reasons precise locations have been omitted In late March 2022 my daughter Kira had a UFO sighting while at school. She excitedly told me about what she’d seen on her arrival home. Sighting Details It was roughly mid-day and Kira was in her Maths class at her school in Olton, Birmingham. Aerial map of Olton She was stuck on a question and so stared out of the classroom window thinking of what the answer could be. It was a sunny day outside with only patchy clouds in the blue sky. Looking to the South South East she noticed what appeared to be a white coloured cigar-shaped object with rounded ends (which some may describe these days as a tic-tac). It appeared to have two vertical lines along it splitting it into three distinct segments. It was at an elevation of 45 degrees in the sky, and hard to tell exactly how far away it was. The object appeared to be completely stationary in the sky. Kira stared at it for around 6 seconds. She didn’t know what to do about the presence of the object. She jumped out of her seat and grabbed some scrap paper to draw the object. Other children in the class wondered what she was up to. It took about 5 seconds for her to grab the paper and return to her desk. When she looked back outside the object had completely vanished. Disappointed that the object was no longer present she wrote down some notes about what she had seen. Towards the end of the lesson her teacher noticed her looking out of the window. As the lesson ended he asked her "Did you see something in the sky?" She just nodded excitedly. Sighting Analysis Kira seemed extremely honest and genuinely excited about what she had witnessed when I spoke with her about it in the evening, so I have no reason to doubt that it took place. When I asked her how she felt at the time she said “At first I was like ‘What the hell is that?’ and then I was like ‘Oh my goodness it could be a UFO!’ It was exciting, but kind of scary as well!” The object certainly sounds intriguing. It was stationary in the sky so cannot have been an aeroplane visible at an unusual angle. The vertical lines on it splitting it into sections make it sound like a structured object rather than just a small cloud. Also, if it was a cloud it is unlikely to have dissipated in such a small space of time. While a glint of sunlight coming through the glass cannot be entirely ruled out, surely she would have seen this on other occasions at the same time of day? To my knowledge Kira had never seen the object before, nor has reported it since. I did consider the idea of it being a hand glider or even someone sky diving and descending on a parachute. However, the fact that it was stationary seem to make these explanations unlikely. If it was a white coloured novelty balloon of some kind surely it would have still been visible when Kira returned to her desk? At this time I am unable to find a suitable mundane explanation for what was observed, and therefore it remains a mystery. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated: 20/07/2026 On 25th September 2022 I was contacted by a night security guard named Stuart. He guards Elmdon Trading Estate after dark. He informed me that approximately 20 minutes before he called he had witnessed a UFO over Birmingham International Airport. My conversation with him has led to the creation of this report. Sighting Details Stuart works close to where the aeroplanes at Birmingham International Airport are parked up for the night. He and another younger guard were sitting down on their night shift. It was an extremely clear night with the stars fully visible. He was looking to the South West in the direction of the airport. Just before 11pm he suddenly noticed an extremely bright white orb of light with a light blue coloured trail behind it. The object flew past them just off to the right of their location, and began moving away to the South West. It appeared to be quite low in the sky and certainly within the atmosphere. Aerial map showing the position of the witness and the estimated flight path of the object Stuart stood up and exclaimed “What the fuck is that?!” Before he had a chance to get his mobile phone out to photograph or record the object it disappeared into the distance. In total he had watched it for about 10 seconds. By the time the younger guard checked, the object had gone. Sighting Analysis Most aspects described would usually be explainable as a meteorite. However, these tend to only remain visible in the sky for a couple of seconds at most. Stuart suspected that it might instead be a rocket launch. After looking online I confirmed that this does indeed appear to be the case. On 22nd September 2022 a NASA Sounding Rocket carrying a new X-Ray instrument named Rockets for Extended-Source X-ray Spectroscopy (tREXS) was launched from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. It performed a brief sub-orbital flight. Below is an article about the launch featuring photographs of the rocket and a video of the launch: https://science.psu.edu/news/tREXS-9-2022 Rocket launches often leave a long trail behind them, just as Stuart reported seeing. It is extremely likely that he witnessed this rocket travelling through the upper atmosphere. I therefore consider this particular case closed. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026

Birmingham UFO Group Case Report Author: Dave Hodrien Release Year: 2022 Last Updated: 20/07/2026 Note: For reasons of anonymity pseudonyms have been used In November 2022 I released a BUFOG case report about a glowing red oval-shaped UFO seen over Chudleigh Knighton. As usual I posted a link to the case report on numerous different UFO related Facebook groups. In response to one of these posts I was contacted by a man who I shall name “Evan”. He wanted to report a similar sighting he had in the Lake District in 2019. Sadly there is not much details as Evan did not respond after initial correspondence, but I have released this report to get it down on record. Sighting Details On 6th November 2019 Evan and his family went on holiday to the Lake District. They stayed in the village of Lowick. Aerial map of Lowick Around 9pm Evan went outside to smoke his vape. He looked up at the clear night sky. Suddenly a red coloured glowing light became visible in the sky heading in his direction. At first he thought it was a helicopter but there was no sound, and it appeared to be too low in sky. As it passed overhead he noticed that it was not a self-luminescent sphere, but was a red light attached to a larger object which he could just see the outline of, though it wasn’t clear enough to ascertain the shape. Evan says he is a keen astronomer and astro-photographer, but had never seen anything like this before. He feels lucky to have seen it and thinks about the sighting regularly. Sighting Analysis Even though not much is known about the incident, it is still possible to determine certain things. The fact that Evan heard no sound coming from the object does tend to put the idea of it being an aeroplane or helicopter out of the picture. Sound travels especially well after dark so it is likely he would have heard the sound of the engine or rotor blades. Another aspect pointing away from this possibility is the fact that he didn’t see any other lights on the object – aircraft also have white static, white strobing and green lights on them usually, and he did get to observe it from different angles as it approached and flew overhead. Could the object have been a drone? While this is certainly worth considering, again it is likely he would have heard the distinctive buzzing of the rotor blades. Evan did not make it clear how big the object was, but drones usually have four lights not one. If it was far enough away from him for the sound to not be heard and all the lights to bleed into a singular red orb, then he would not have seen the outline of a larger object around it. If Evan had not described seeing this outline I would have perhaps suggested a red coloured LED balloon. The incident did happen the day after bonfire night, one of the times of the year when sky lanterns and LED balloons are more commonly launched. But if it was an LED balloon or lantern there would have not been an outline of a larger object. With mundane explanations seemingly discounted this remains an intriguing sighting. Copyright Dave Hodrien 2026